


leave tonight (or live and die this way)

by Fives (janfives90)



Category: The Prom - Sklar/Beguelin/Martin
Genre: Car thief AU, F/F, warnings: violence; references to abuse; panic attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2019-12-16
Packaged: 2021-02-18 11:15:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 23,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21560269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/janfives90/pseuds/Fives
Summary: There has always been something off about them, even beyond their dark clothing and rowdy behavior. Whenever they are in the diner, their eyes examine every inch of the place, as if waiting for possible attack, and their unusually large tips never match what they look like they can afford.Something about them has always given off the impression of danger and threat, and it changes the atmosphere of the whole diner every night.
Relationships: Alyssa Greene/Emma Nolan
Comments: 24
Kudos: 90





	1. Chapter 1

If there is one thing that Emma Nolan considers herself good at, it’s flirting with pretty women.

If she gets to list two things she’s good at, it’s flirting with pretty women and stealing.

She walks along the sidewalk, hood pulled up, her gloved hands stashed into her pockets. Silently, a second person joins her. “How does it look?” she asks.

“Not much of interest, though there’s a nice Mercedes coming down the street behind us. Maybe we’ll luck out and they’ll leave it running outside the pizza shop like the idiots always do.”

Emma snorts. “You love the easy work, don’t you, Nick?”

Nick shrugs and blows hot breath onto his hands to warm them. “Take what I can get.”

“Dinner says they park it in front of the Chinese place, not the pizza place.”

“I’m not taking that bet. Not against you and your spooky prediction skills.”

Emma grins as they watch the Mercedes drive past them and stop in front of the Chinese restaurant, both occupants getting out and going inside while the car is still running.

“Seriously,” Nick says with a shake of his head. “How do you do that?”

“Experience. And people just aren’t that surprising.” She nods her head towards the car and he sprints forward, jumping into the driver’s seat and taking off with a quiet screech of the tires.

By the time the owners are back out of the restaurant, their car is long gone.

* * *

Alyssa Greene glances up at the clock as she puts on a new pot of coffee.

At 9:30 pm, the Madison Diner is quiet.

It won’t be in fifteen minutes.

“Who wants to deal with the assholes today?” Kaylee asks, sighing as she tucks her pencil behind her ear and leans on the counter, sipping from a glass of water.

“I’ll do it,” Alyssa says. “I need rent money.”

Greg, stacking clean glasses next to the juice machine, shakes his head. “I don’t know why your mom lets them stick around, Lys. They should’ve been banned ages ago.”

Kaylee scoffs. “Sure, Greg. Ban the people who look like they’re in a gang. I’m sure nothing could possibly go wrong.” She straightens her posture and smiles as, right on schedule, their 9:35 pm regular walks in and takes a seat in her normal booth at the back of the diner. “Hey, Shelby.”

Shelby gives a small wave and, like usual, takes a textbook out of her bag and sets it out on the table.

Alyssa rolls her eyes. “Someday you’ll have to have more of a conversation with her than ‘what are you having to eat tonight’.”

Kaylee pauses for a long moment before starting to say something, then stopping.

Alyssa holds up a hand. “Please. Please don’t.”

“You said it, not me,” Kaylee says with a shrug, grabbing a menu and walking over to Shelby’s booth.

Alyssa shakes her head, then looks over when she sees Greg go tense beside her. “What?”

“They’re early,” he mutters.

The group is typically at the diner at precisely 9:45 pm every night, but tonight they’re five minutes early. Alyssa watches as two men walk in first, one very tall with brown hair, one shorter with black hair, closely followed by a short brunette woman and a blonde a little bit taller than Alyssa.

There has always been something  _ off _ about them, even beyond their dark clothing and rowdy behavior. Whenever they are in the diner, their eyes examine every inch of the place, as if waiting for possible attack, and their unusually large tips never match what they look like they can afford.

Something about them has always given off the impression of  _ danger _ and  _ threat, _ and it changes the atmosphere of the whole diner every night.

Alyssa picks up four menus and walks over to the table. The whole time she speaks, the blonde, sitting closest to her, stares with a smirk on her face. “Evening, guys. I’ll get you some waters and let you decide what you’d like tonight.”

She starts to leave, but, before she gets far, she feels a hand grab her ass and steer her back to the table. It takes a moment to realize that the blonde is pulling her into her lap.

“Why don’t you stay here instead, sweetheart?” The blonde grins, a toothpick in between her teeth sharp and pointing out at an angle. “We won’t bite.”

Alyssa scoffs and takes the toothpick from her. “I’m not worried about the bite. I’m worried about the infection.”

The other three at the table burst into laughter as the blonde scowls at her. “There’s no need to be rude, sweetheart. I’m just trying to be friendly.”

“Well, maybe  _ I’m _ not friendly,” Alyssa says, tapping the blonde on the nose with the toothpick before sticking it in her own mouth and squirming out of the blonde’s grip. She gives her a cocky wink, then walks away.

“Who the fuck does she think she is?” Greg demands, fuming, as Alyssa rejoins him.

Alyssa shrugs as she takes out glasses and fills them with water. “The leader of their little gang of miscreants, it seems. She’s harmless.”

_ “Harmless? _ Are you that far in denial about what she’s doing to you every night?”

“Greg,” Alyssa says in a tired voice. “I just want to do my job. Can we just do our jobs?”

He narrows his eyes and mutters something under his breath, but nods and heads into the kitchen.

* * *

Alyssa washes her hands in the diner bathroom, taking a moment to just stand still and breathe.

“Sorry, sweetheart. It’s just so hard not to touch.”

She turns around, looking at the blonde leaning against the bathroom door with a smug look on her face. “You’re really pushing it, Nolan.”

“Am I? It’s hard to tell. You’re the one who set the rules.”

Alyssa stands there for a moment, silent, staring at the grin on Emma Nolan’s face. “You’re such an asshole,” she mutters before walking forward and kissing her.

Emma laughs into the kiss and spins her, pinning her against the door. “You’re working,” she mumbles against Alyssa’s throat. “You told me we shouldn’t do this when you’re-”

“Fuck what I said. And fuck me.”

“You’re lucky I like you so much,” Emma growls, her hand on Alyssa’s thigh, just barely at the edge of her skirt. “I don’t usually let people order me around like this.” She nips at Alyssa’s lower lip. “And I definitely don’t  _ let _ them insult me.”

“Oh,” Alyssa says innocently, an effect ruined by her voice breaking when Emma’s hand creeps higher. “Was I being insulting?”

There’s a glint in Emma’s eyes that’s both dangerous and  _ hot. _ “Yes. You were.”

“Guess you should do something about it, then, huh?”

“You’re right.” Emma very deliberately looks at her watch. “Looks like you have three hours left on your shift, sweetheart. You should come over afterward.”

“Emma Nolan, don’t you  _ dare-” _

Emma interrupts her by kissing her again, then grins and steps back far enough that they aren’t touching at all. “I’ve got work to do, sweetheart. So do you.”

Alyssa gives a frustrated sigh. “Are you ever going to explain that ‘work’? I know you do something bad. I just can’t figure out what.” She reaches out, skimming her fingers along Emma’s jaw. “Just please tell me you aren’t a drug dealer.”

Emma laughs. “Not in this life, darlin’.”

“You’re  _ sure _ you don’t want to-”

“You made the rules, sweetheart.” Emma grins at her and gently pulls her away from the door. She presses a quick, soft kiss to Alyssa’s lips. “And I am  _ oh so good _ at following rules.” She winks and walks out of the bathroom.

Alyssa sighs, taking cold water from the sink and splashing it onto her face. “Someday I might kill that woman,” she mutters to her reflection before adjusting her uniform and heading back out to work.


	2. Chapter 2

Emma parks her Camaro in the lot of the junkyard, getting out and locking it behind her. She slides her hands into the pockets of her hooded flannel and walks around behind the back of the small office, where Barry Glickman is examining the inside of a stolen Porsche.

“I dropped the money off to Greene. She said it might take a little longer than usual; the IRS is auditing her this week. She said it was routine, but we might want to keep an eye on her just in case we need to get some strings pulled.”

“That’s fine. Tell her not to worry about it. We’ll have her back as long as she keeps doing her job.” Barry wipes his hands off with a cloth. “The daughter still knows nothing?”

Emma shrugs. “As far as I know. I’m not her babysitter.”

Barry pats her a bit roughly on the cheek. “No one would trust you to be a babysitter. A firestarter, maybe. Babysitter? No chance.”

“Hey, that arson charge was bullshit. That was an  _ accident.” _

“Honey, you set a church on fire.”

Emma frowns at him. “Accidentally.”

Barry puts his arm around her shoulders and steers her towards the office. “Have you heard about that shipment coming in?”

“The brand new load of cars going to the docks? Sheldon mentioned them the last time I brought a car to him.”

“Dee Dee and I have a bit of a deal set up.”

Emma groans loudly. “Barry, you know what happens when you and Dee Dee strike up deals. I end up having to fix the mess you both make.”

“I see that as a good thing!” he says as he lets her go so he can unlock the door and let both of them inside.

“Of course you do.” Emma walks in and sits down in one of the big, comfier chairs near Barry’s desk. “Because you’re not the one getting shot at.”

“You were shot at  _ once. _ ” Barry sits down behind his desk. “Are you never going to let me live that down?”

“It was twice, and no. I got the shit beat out of me one time because of your dumb plans, too. I don’t really want to replicate the experience.” Emma points at her face. “Do you know how expensive glasses are?”

“Kid, if this deal works, you’ll be able to afford as many glasses as you want.”

“Yeah, that’s not really an optimistic statement right after I mention the broken glasses in terms of me getting punched.”

Barry snorts and glances at his screen. “Unfortunately, kid, it’s too late to back out. Dee Dee already agreed, and Hawkins and Trent are ready for the added inventory. Angie is going to chop a few, too, so that we don’t overload.”

Emma sighs heavily. “Okay. Well. You know we’ll be ready when you need us.”

“I know. Just remember to stay focused, alright?” His eyes soften, and Emma suddenly feels like a little kid again, being pulled off of the concrete. “I really don’t want anyone to get hurt, Emma. Especially not you.”

“We’ll do our best.”

“Your best won’t stop a bullet. Just be careful.”

Emma nods and drums her hands on the arms of her chair. “We’ve got this, Barry. Okay? I promise.”

* * *

Alyssa runs a hand through her hair, gasping for breath, her heart beating rapidly. “Jesus,” she pants. “Remind me to piss you off more often.”

“You’re one to talk,” Emma mutters, her fingers skimming over Alyssa’s belly as she kisses her neck. “You’re fun when you’re frustrated with me.”

“Good, because I’m still frustrated. Leaving me to think for three hours. You’re such a bastard.”

Emma laughs and tugs at Alyssa’s hip, rolling Alyssa on top of her. “Sorry. Would you have preferred it if I had sex with you in a grimy diner bathroom where any of your coworkers - or mine - could find us, even though we don’t want them to know?”

Alyssa narrows her eyes. “Watch yourself, Nolan. That’s my mother’s diner that you’re calling  _ grimy. _ I’ve cleaned that bathroom myself.”

“And I bet you did a very good job, babe, but you’re sort of glossing over the point of what I was saying.”

“I know,” Alyssa sighs. “I know. We have the rules in place for a reason. You act like a prick, I act annoyed, nobody finds out, and we get to have as much sex as we want.” She leans down and kisses Emma, all teeth and tongue, until Emma whimpers. “That doesn’t mean it isn’t fun to imagine.”

“True.” Emma brushes her fingers up and down Alyssa’s spine. “I-”

Her words are swallowed by a sudden, loud crack of thunder.

Alyssa shudders and looks towards the window. “Shit,” she mumbles.

Emma picks up her phone and opens the weather app. “That’s not going anywhere for a while. You might as well work out some more of that frustration.”

Alyssa shakes her head, smiling. “I picked up an afternoon shift to cover for someone. I can’t be up  _ all _ night.” She sighs. “I’ll just have to work my way home in spite of the weather.”

“Well, I mean…” Emma starts tracing nonsensical patterns in Alyssa’s hip. “You could always stick around. We clearly both fit in the bed, and I’m sure I can find an extra toothbrush around here somewhere.”

Alyssa stares down at her. “We’ve… never done that on purpose.”

“Yeah, I know.” Emma shrugs. “So maybe I don’t want you walking home in the pouring rain in the dark. What’s it to you?”

“Aw, don’t tell me you’re starting to  _ care, _ Nolan,” Alyssa says with a snicker.

Emma scoffs. “Fuck you. I could’ve offered to drive you home, but I don’t feel like going out there either. Take it or leave it, Greene.”

Alyssa laughs. “I’ll take it. But you owe me another round, because I’m still mad at you about earlier.”

“Oh, woe is me. Such a terrible fate.” Emma flips them, grinning as Alyssa laughs. “I’ll make it quick so you can get some sleep.”

“Why do I have a feeling that I’m not going to go to sleep tonight?”

Emma smirks as she presses kisses down Alyssa’s sternum. “I guess that’s up to you, babe.”


	3. Chapter 3

Alyssa steps out of the shower, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her body. She wraps her hair in a second towel, but she stops at the door instead of walking out, hearing a conversation on the other side of it. She dries herself off and changes back into the sleep clothes Emma gave her as she listens.

_ “You need to be focused, or you’re going to get us all killed. What would Barry say if he knew you found out about a new job and did nothing but go home and get laid?” _

_ “I know what I’m doing, Nick. I don’t really need your critique of my management skills.” _

_ “Look, Emma, you’ve always managed us just fine. But sometimes I worry that you’ll get too damn cocky one of these days, and that will ruin us. If something goes wrong-” _

_ “Nothing is going to go wrong. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d appreciate it if you left me alone so that I could finish my breakfast.” _

_ “...Fine. But this conversation isn’t over.” _

_ “Yes. It is. I’ll see you later, Nick.” _

Alyssa hears the door to the apartment open and close, and she waits a couple minutes before exiting the bathroom.

Emma is standing in the living room, her hands on her hips, staring at the floor with a troubled look on her face. She lifts her head when Alyssa enters, and her expression lightens immediately. “Hey.” Her gaze skims up and down Alyssa. “You look good.”

“I’m sure.” Alyssa walks over to her and kisses her lightly. “Who was here?”

“O-Oh,” Emma stammers, looking startled, as if she hadn’t expected Alyssa to hear. “Uhm. Just Nick. He’s the guy with the black hair who’s always in the diner with me.”

“He seemed upset.”

Emma laughs dryly. “He just thinks that I overestimate myself. Maybe I do.” She gives Alyssa a hungry grin. “How can I not when I have you in my bed?”

Alyssa puts a hand over Emma’s mouth and lightly pushes her backwards. “Cute, but no chance. I have to get ready to go to work.” She lowers her hand.  _ “Plus, _ if I’m a distraction that could get you  _ killed, _ I don’t think-”

“Nick is just being dramatic,” Emma soothes, brushing her hands down Alyssa’s arms. “I can’t start planning anything without the boss, anyway.”

“Barry?”

Emma pales. “Lys,” she says slowly. “How much of that conversation did you hear?”

Alyssa shrugs. “Pretty much everything from Nick asking what this Barry guy would think about you being with me instead of working.”

“Fuck,” Emma whispers, turning on her heel and taking a few steps away from Alyssa.

“What does it matter? It’s all nonsense to me.” Alyssa fidgets with the pale purple t-shirt, hoping Emma won’t notice her nervousness.

“Lys,” Emma says quietly. “You can’t repeat anything you heard. Okay? Even if it doesn’t make sense. It could get a lot of people hurt or put in prison, and I have no intention of going back to-” She cuts herself off by slapping her own hand over her mouth, closing her eyes with a wince.

_ “...Back _ to… Emma…”

“I’ve been trying so hard not to tell you that.” Emma gives a strained laugh and shakes her head. “I’m doing such a great job this morning.”

Alyssa takes a small step forward. “When?”

“Juvie. I was a kid. And I don’t really like talking about it, Lys.”

“You don’t like talking about much, do you?”

Emma laughs. “I didn’t really think this was a  _ talking _ relationship. We have sex, and then we move on, and we’re both all the better for it.”

Alyssa scoffs. “Uh-huh. Sure.” She points towards the kitchen. “And you have two place settings out for breakfast for, what, you and your imaginary friend?”

“Don’t test me, woman,” Emma growls, taking a step towards Alyssa.

Alyssa closes the space between them, getting right in Emma’s face. “Don’t take me for a fool, then.”

Emma gives a slow grin. “Wouldn’t dream of it, sweetheart. You’re far too clever for that.”

Alyssa stares at her for a long moment, then grabs the back of her neck and pulls her into a heated kiss. “I shouldn’t do this,” she mumbles, even as she grips Emma’s shirt and leads her towards the bedroom. “I should make you tell me  _ something  _ or leave.”

“Are you going to?” Emma asks, a little smugly.

Alyssa spins her and shoves her down onto the bed. “No. In fact, I think I don’t want you to talk at all.”

“That might be hard for me. I’m chatty.”

“I think I can figure something out.”

* * *

“Sorry! I’m so sorry, Mom! I know I’m late!” Alyssa rushes into the diner and presses a kiss to her mother’s cheek, pulling her hair up into a bun as she goes.

“Half an hour, Alyssa,” Mrs. Greene says, looking at the clock on the wall. “That’s not like you.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I got caught up in some things.”

“Hm.” Mrs. Greene grabs Alyssa’s jaw and tilts her head to the side. “Is that what they’re calling it these days?”

“...What?”

Mrs. Greene rolls her eyes and goes back to her inventory. “You have a hickey on your neck, Alyssa.”

Alyssa blushes bright red. “Oh, God.”

“I’m not going to ask, but there’s some makeup in my purse. It won’t match you, but maybe you should try to use some anyway.”

“Right. Uh. Shit. I mean. Sorry. I was just. Uh.”

“You’re an adult, Alyssa. I don’t need an explanation.” Mrs. Greene gives her a hard look. “But next time, perhaps you can be a little more adult about how it affects your work. Hm?”

“Of course. I’m sorry. Again.” Still stammering, Alyssa backs up until she’s close to the office, and disappears through the door.

She grabs the makeup from her mother’s purse and uses the small mirror to see as she covers the mark on her throat.

She and Emma have always done everything they could to keep the marks they’ve left on each other hidden and out of sight.

Whatever mood this morning put them in just made both of them forget their common sense.

And as she covers the small mark, Alyssa can’t help but feel like she wouldn’t mind letting everyone know exactly who caused it.

* * *

“Kid. Can we talk for a minute?”

Emma doesn’t look up from her work, replacing the VIN in a stolen Mustang. “What’s up?”

Barry pats her on the shoulder. “Emma. I want your full attention, please.”

She stands and turns, leaning against the car. “That’s not a good sign. What’s going on?”

“The date of the shipment’s arrival shifted a bit.” Barry pauses. “It’s arriving on November 27th.”

Emma swallows. “Oh.”

“I know you usually don’t work that day. I know it’s not a good day. But I  _ need _ you, kid. You’re the one I trust the most. You’re my best. I  _ need _ you to figure out how to do it. Please?”

“Y-Yeah.” Emma nods, tossing her tools onto the driver’s seat and shoving her hands into her pockets. “Uhm. Yeah. I can do that.”

“Good,” Barry says with a relieved sigh. “Good.” He presses a kiss to her forehead. “Thank you, kid. You tell me if you need anything?”

“Yeah. Yeah, Barry, I will.”

He pats her shoulder again. “Good kid.”

He walks away, and Emma just stands there for a moment, staring into the distance, before slumping against the frame of the car and letting out a soft whimper.

* * *

Alyssa opens the door to her apartment and is hit by the immediate smell of cigarette smoke.

She flinches and turns on the light, confused, and she almost jumps out of her skin when she sees Emma sitting on a chair in her living room, a cigarette in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other.

_ “Jesus!” _ Alyssa puts a hand on her chest and feels her heart thudding rapidly. “Emma, you scared the hell out of me. How did you even get in here?”

“I’m a career criminal, Alyssa,” Emma says dully. “How the fuck do you  _ think _ I got in here? There’s forty different ways to break in just through the window in your bedroom.” She takes a large sip from the bottle of whiskey. “Which reminds me, one of these days I should update your security. Who better than me, huh?” She gives a laugh that sounds so hollow that it scares Alyssa even more than the surprise she got seconds earlier.

“I didn’t know you smoked,” Alyssa says carefully, hanging her coat up on the coat rack before she takes a seat on the couch across from Emma.

“Mm.” Emma stares down at the cigarette. “Barry made me quit when I was eighteen. I haven’t had one since, and I haven’t actually had this one yet, but. It’s tempting.”

Without a word, Alyssa reaches over and takes it from her, only noticing in that moment that there’s a handgun sitting on the table in front of Emma. Alyssa goes into the kitchen and extinguishes the cigarette in the sink, then throws it out before sitting back down.

“Is that what the toothpicks are about? Having something in your mouth?”

“Yeah.” Emma looks up at her, and there’s a pain in her eyes that Alyssa has never seen from her before. “You couldn’t have let me drown myself in my misery for just one night, Lys?”

“You could’ve stopped me if you actually wanted to. And you still have plenty of alcohol to work through.”

“True.” Emma takes another sip. “I don’t think it’s gonna be enough.”

Alyssa is quiet for a moment. “Emma,” she says softly. “What’s going on?”

“Every year, I spend one particular day trying to just… forget. Forget what I’ve done, forget how I got where I am, forget everything. I usually do it alone, but… when I went to buy the whiskey, I somehow ended up walking here instead. I’m sorry. It’s probably not a good idea for me to leave unless you want me to, but if you just go to bed, I’ll try not to burden you.”

“You’re not burdening me. I just want to know what’s wrong.” Alyssa inches closer. “Emma,” she says softly. “Just because we aren’t dating, just because we don’t have feelings, none of that means that we can’t care about each other in some way, right? At the very least, I can care about your well-being. Right?”

Emma gives a noncommittal shrug.

“Then let me help. You’re a criminal. I know that. I’ve known that almost since the day I met you. What could possibly make you this upset?”

There’s a pause, and Emma sighs heavily. She takes another swig of whiskey before she lifts her gaze to meet Alyssa’s. In a soft, shaky voice, she says, “I killed someone.”


	4. Chapter 4

Alyssa grips the fabric of her sweatpants. “What do you mean you killed someone?”

Emma stares at the floor, refusing to look at her. “As far as the others are concerned, some guy was in my way when I was trying to steal something, and I shot him.”

“...As far as the others are concerned? What about as far as _you’re_ concerned?”

“Noticed that, did you?” Emma gives a soft laugh. “Look, I’ve been a thief since I was nine. I was taken from my parents and put into foster care, but I didn’t want to be there, so I just… left. Lived on the streets. Learned how to be a pickpocket. Every time I ended up in juvie they’d put me back in the system, but I always just walked away. Barry gave me a way to focus what I was doing. Maybe he wasn’t a good influence, but he’s the only adult who’s ever really given a shit about me in a way that feels genuine.” She takes another sip of whiskey. “He certainly saved my ass from going to real prison.”

“What happened, Em?” Alyssa asks softly.

“I had done a burglary. Nothing dramatic, just some jewelry and some cash. Apparently, someone from another group in the city had been planning on stealing from the same house, and he didn’t care about the fact that there’s no reason I would’ve known that. He confronted me while I was in a workshop taking care of something for Barry. While I was alone, because I guess whatever I had done had embarrassed him, or something.” Emma takes another sip of the whiskey. “If it was just a fight, it would’ve been fine. I would’ve been fine with that. I’ve taken beatings before, and I can handle myself in a fight. But this was…” She swallows and shakes her head. “I don’t know what it was about this burglary. If he had been planning on using it to prove himself, or if there was something in that house he wanted, or what. It shouldn’t have caused this.” She pauses, taking in a breath. “He stabbed me.”

“He _what?”_

“He stabbed me. If I hadn’t seen it coming and moved at the last moment, I wouldn’t be here right now. I’d be dead.” Emma rubs at her eyes and sighs. “I panicked. It wasn’t supposed to be like that. I panicked, and I grabbed a wrench, and I hit him with it, twice, just to try to make the whole thing stop.” She gives a dry laugh. “It did.”

Alyssa closes her eyes and bows her head. “Jesus.”

“I called Barry. I was scared out of my mind. I didn’t know what to do. I-I was just sixteen, I didn’t… He covered it all up. Cleaned me up. Told me that as far as anyone in our circles was concerned, I shot him during a robbery because he wouldn’t cooperate.”

“Why? Why not just not say anything?”

Emma swallows and meets her gaze, and Alyssa’s heart aches at the lost look in her eyes. “It’s safer for them to be afraid of you than it is for them to think you’re just a coward.”

Alyssa stands and walks over to her, crouching down in front of her. She takes the whiskey bottle from Emma’s hand and sets it on the table. “You’re not a coward, Emma. And unless you left something out, you only killed someone in self-defense. That’s not your fault.”

Emma stands up, pushing Alyssa back a bit, and she’s surprised by the anger she can see in the tension in Emma’s body. “Don’t try to absolve me of this, Alyssa. Don’t do that.”

“I’m not trying to absolve you. I’m trying to make sure you understand that you don’t need to punish yourself over and over for defending yourself when you were a scared teenager.”

Emma rounds on her. “Are you really that desperate to believe that you haven’t been in bed with a killer for a year?”

Alyssa stands, her eyes narrowing. “Excuse me for thinking the best of you!”

Emma leans in close, their noses almost touching, her eyes glinting. “You’ve never thought the best of me unless we’re in bed, sweetheart. And even then, the things I have to do to impress you? Don’t act innocent.”

Alyssa splutters for a moment before, without even thinking about it, her hand swings up and she slaps her. “You think you can do whatever the hell you want just because you’re, I don’t know, a fucking gang leader or something? I don’t give a shit what you think. You don’t deserve to feel the way you’re feeling, and you can’t goad me into believing otherwise.”

“Don’t get cocky with me, Greene,” Emma growls, getting close again.

“You don’t scare me, Emma Nolan. You never have.”

Emma grabs her and spins, pinning her against the nearby wall. “Not even a little bit?” she asks, her voice soft and dangerous.

“Fuck you,” Alyssa murmurs. “You’re just trying to distract me.”

“I’ve never been very good at handling emotions in productive ways.”

Alyssa stares at her for a long moment. “Neither have I,” she admits, before pulling Emma towards her and kissing her.

* * *

“The tips can’t possibly be worth it, Alyssa,” Greg mutters, watching as Emma’s group laughs and jokes around while they eat. “Not for the way they treat you.”

“Greg, seriously, they’re really not a big deal. Annoying, sure, but that’s really only the leader, and I can handle her. It’s worth the tips.”

“I still don’t like it. You’re leading them on, and you’re going to cause yourself problems.”

Alyssa narrows her eyes. “Excuse me?”

He winces. “That’s not what I meant.”

“I’m sure,” she says coldly. “You’re not my boss, Greg, and you’re not my friend. You’re my coworker. Next time you say something like that to me, I’ll take it up with _our_ boss. Got it?”

“Jesus, Alyssa, it’s not a big deal.”

 _“Got it?”_ Alyssa repeats, a little too loudly.

Greg pauses. “Yeah.”

“Is there a problem over there, sweetheart?” Emma asks, leaning back in her chair. “If he’s bothering you, I can always break his hand.”

The other three at her table snicker.

“Unnecessary,” Alyssa replies briskly. “Mind your own business.” She raises an eyebrow at Emma, hoping she gets the unspoken _‘I’m fine’._

Emma shrugs. “Whatever you say, sweetheart. I’m just trying to help.”

She can see the understanding in Emma’s eyes, and it makes Alyssa relax. Emma’s smirk softens, almost unnoticeably, and she goes back to her conversation.

“You should mind your own business, too, Greg,” Alyssa says quietly.

“Sure,” he mutters. “It’s your funeral.” He turns and goes back into the kitchen.

“What the hell was that about?” Kaylee asks, stopping next to Alyssa to put a menu away.

“Just Greg bitching about our regulars again.”

“I mean, I don’t like them either, but I don’t think there’s much we can do with it at this point.”

Alyssa nods at Shelby, sitting in her usual corner reading her textbook. “Have you talked to her yet?”

“Fuck no.”

“If you don’t talk to her, you’ll never make any progress.”

Kaylee snorts. “Oh, yeah? Since when did Alyssa ‘Hasn’t Been In A Relationship In Four Years’ Greene have advice on getting a date?”

Alyssa narrows her eyes. “Everybody’s a critic tonight.”

Kaylee laughs and pats her on the shoulder. “Maybe that means something, Lys. Food for thought.”

As she walks away, Alyssa bites her lip and looks back over at Emma.

* * *

Emma leans against the back of the diner, fidgeting with her toothpick and watching the fence along the back of the property for any sign of someone watching her.

A door opens next to her, and Mrs. Greene steps out, pulling a coat over her shoulders.

“Everything’s gone through the diner. It’s all clean. Hidden in purchases and payroll and a few fake diners.” Mrs. Greene hands Emma an unmarked envelope. “I took my standard ten percent.”

“Good. Any word on the audit?”

“It seems like it’s going to go through just fine. You know me. I keep everything as tight as possible.”

“That you do.” Emma tucks the envelope into the pocket of her flannel. “I saw a few of those idiots from the high school hanging around outside your place earlier. Are they causing problems again? I told them to leave you and your daughter alone.”

Mrs. Greene scoffs. “As far as I can tell, they’re just some punk kids trying to look tough. I don’t think they’re a concern.”

“Regardless. If you get a bad feeling and want me to have a word with them, I will. You know how to find me.”

“Noted.” Mrs. Greene shakes her hand. “Goodnight, Nolan.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Greene.”

The woman walks back into the diner, and Emma stares up at the sky.

She takes out her phone when it vibrates in her pocket, holding it up to her ear and answering, “Nolan.”

_“Kid. Are you heading over here once you’re done at the diner?”_

“Yeah. I was going to be on my way in a few minutes. Why?”

_“Dee Dee is here. We’re finalizing the plans for this theft. Tonight.”_


	5. Chapter 5

Emma walks into the office of the junkyard, her hands in her pockets and a nervous smile on her lips. “Dee Dee. It’s been a while.”

The woman seated across from Barry doesn’t get up, but she does give Emma a polite nod. “Nolan.” Dee Dee gestures towards the woman standing next to her chair. “You remember my lieutenant, Carrie?”

“I’ve stolen a few things out from under her,” Emma says with a grin, shaking Carrie’s hand.

“Yes, what _did_ happen to my car, Nolan?” Carrie asks, her eyes narrow.

“It’s in a better place now.”

“Children, if you can’t talk with the adults, you can go play outside,” Dee Dee says, raising an eyebrow at them.

Emma clears her throat and straightens her shoulders. “Sorry. Have you decided on anything yet?”

“Once the shipment gets here, it will be put onto trucks for transport. We’re planning on having people from our organization and Dee Dee’s hijack the trucks instead of worrying about trying to get all of the cars out individually.”

Emma bites her lips and shifts her weight, a spike of anxiety running through her.

Barry leans back in his chair. “You don’t like it.”

“I just… It worries me, yeah. Very few of us have much experience driving the big trucks, and they’ll be a lot more obvious on the road. There’s going to be workers, and the cops will be looking for us the second those guys report the theft. A tough drive that needs to get out of sight almost immediately? Yeah, I don’t like it.”

“What would you prefer?”

“They usually leave them in the warehouse for one night before the trucks get there. Our teams get them all open and running, bring in a few of Angie’s people as backup drivers, and we just drive them all out individually. Take different streets through the city and go to various locations to hide out, then bring them to the yards one by one so there’s no undue attention.”

Barry gives a small nod. “That’s a pretty good plan.”

Dee Dee scoffs. “That would take too long. We need to get this job done as fast as possible. There’s too much risk in doing it slow and steady.”

“There’s too much risk in doing it too fast,” Emma retorts.

Dee Dee rolls her eyes and looks at Barry. “Don’t tell me you’re going for this. We talked through the plan. It’ll work. This kid isn’t-”

“My lieutenant has more experience than most of your crew put together, Allen,” Barry says quietly. “I trust that experience.”

Dee Dee scoffs. “How old are you, Nolan?”

“Twenty-four, ma’am,” Emma says quietly.

“I’ve been doing this longer than you’ve been alive.” Dee Dee points at Barry. “I think that matters more in this case.”

Barry’s jaw tenses. “You don’t outrank me, Dee Dee. Why don’t we talk one on one and decide whether faster really is going to be better?”

“Fine.” Dee Dee waves her hand. “You two are dismissed.”

Emma looks at Barry, who nods. She nods back and follows Carrie out of the office.

“You’re an arrogant shit, aren’t you?” Carrie asks as she heads to a small Honda parked nearby.

“What do you mean?”

“You really think you can make a better plan than people like Dee Dee and Barry?”

Emma shrugs. “Just because they’re in charge doesn’t mean they can’t take advice. We’re their lieutenants for a reason.”

Carrie laughs. “I’m Dee Dee’s lieutenant because she wants somebody to keep the other idiots in line. She doesn’t want my opinion.”

“Yeah, well, maybe that’s why I get paid more than you do.” Emma smirks and walks over to her own car, only letting her frustration show in the tightness of her fists.

* * *

“I just want to get her attention,” Nick says, watching Kaylee take a coffee to Shelby. “I think I could impress her.”

Emma snorts. “She doesn’t like us. She’s not gonna want to sleep with you, dumbass.”

Nick puffs out his chest. “I can flirt well enough to overcome a little bit of hostility.”

“Yeah, because that’s a girl’s dream,” Hayden says dryly, stealing one of Kevin’s fries. “A guy she hates hitting on her at her workplace.”

“Bite me, Shields,” Nick retorts.

Hayden smirks. “I’d rather die.”

Emma sighs heavily. “Remind me next time to get you all kids’ menus.”

Kevin brightens. “Would that mean I can get crayons and one of those ‘spot the difference’ puzzles?”

Hayden pats him on the shoulder. “Tell you what. I’ll get you a whole book of them for our birthday, pal.”

“Sweet!”

Kaylee wanders past their table, looking down at her notepad, and Nick grabs her arm.

“Hey,” he says with a grin.

She gives such a tired sigh that Hayden and Emma both snicker. “What do you need? More coffee?”

“Nah, I’m fine on coffee. I was hoping for your number, actually. I could take you out. Show you a real nice time.”

Kaylee just stares at him for a long moment. “That’s really the best you can do? How long have you been working on that?”

Emma chokes on her water, laughing so hard that she covers her mouth to try to hide it.

Nick frowns. “I’m offering you a great time, baby.”

“Yeah, and I’m saying the tips aren’t worth it.” She flips to a new page on her order pad and scribbles something onto it. “Actually…”

Nick grins and leans back in his chair. “Change your mind?”

“Nope.” Kaylee pulls away from him. She walks over to Shelby’s table and sets the paper down in front of her.

Shelby looks up at her. “Uh… What…”

“My number. In case you. Wanted to…” Kaylee pauses, and Emma can tell that her confidence is wavering. “I don’t know.” Kaylee grabs Shelby by the jaw and kisses her quickly, then gives a quiet squeak of panic and rushes back to the kitchen.

Shelby, looking stunned and confused, stares blankly after her.

Hayden laughs and pats Nick on the back. “Yeah,” she says. “You can flirt _real_ well, Boomer.”

* * *

Alyssa stands at the very back of the diner, out of sight, taking her break while she drinks a cup of coffee.

“Hey,” Emma says softly, leaning against the wall next to her.

“Hi,” Alyssa says, surprised. “How did you get away from your crew?”

“I told them I had to make a phone call.” Emma rests her head back and lets out a sigh. “I just wanted to see you.”

Alyssa frowns and sets her mug down on a small table in the hallway for decoration. “Are you okay? You sound… I don’t know. It just seems like something’s up.”

Emma shakes her head and takes her toothpick out of her mouth, staring down at it as she plays with it between her fingers. “Lys… As far as my guys are concerned, you’re my girl. You know that, right?”

“But… I thought they didn’t…”

“It has nothing to do with actually being together or whatever. It’s because I’m the only one who’s allowed to hit on you, and if anybody else put a hand on you, they’d pay for it.”

Alyssa pauses. “It’s disturbing to me that I find that charming.”

Emma smiles a little but doesn’t laugh. “The point is, if you ever need anything, you can go to them. They’ll help you, because I’d want them to. If anything ever happens to me, they’ll take care of you.”

“...Em,” Alyssa says slowly. “Seriously. What’s going on?”

“Nothing. Everything is going to be okay.” Emma shoves the toothpick into her pocket and steps off the wall, turning and setting her hands on Alyssa’s shoulders. “Everything is going to be fine.” She leans forward, pressing a kiss to Alyssa’s lips, softer than any kiss Alyssa has ever had from Emma before. “I’ll see you tomorrow night, Alyssa Greene,” she murmurs. She kisses Alyssa again, still soft and gentle, then turns and walks back to her group.


	6. Chapter 6

“I’m gonna say it again,” Emma mutters. “I don’t like this.”

One of Dee Dee’s people, Marcus, rolls his eyes. “Can you drive the fucking truck or not, Nolan?”

“I can drive anything. But I’m not worried about  _ me. _ I’m worried what happens once we get off the property.”

“If we do our jobs right, that won’t be an issue.”

Emma scoffs. “Sure, Marcus. Whatever you say.” She starts walking towards the parking lot of the shipyard, where the trailers loaded with cars are visible, but she stops in her tracks when she hears the sharp crack of gunfire. “What the fuck is-”

“Shit.”

“Pull everyone back.” Emma turns, throwing an emergency hand signal in the direction of where she knows Hayden is set up. “That’s it. Get your guys out of-”

Marcus shoves her hard in the chest, sending her tumbling backwards onto the ground. “You don’t make that call,” he growls.

“Excuse me? Who the fuck do you think you are?”

He reaches down and grabs her by the front of her shirt, dragging her back to her feet. “Dee Dee’s crew is in charge here, Nolan. I don’t give a shit what you and your guys want to believe. We’re finishing this. So get your ass into one of those trucks, or you won’t have to worry about getting shot by a guard, because I’ll shoot you myself.”

Emma watches him for a long moment. “When this is over, you and I are going to have a very long talk.”

“You’d better hope you make it out then.” Marcus shoves her towards one of the trucks. “Get going, Nolan.”

She sprints towards one of the trucks and hops up next to the door, starting to work to open it.

She tries to keep her focus even as she hears more gunshots, and people behind her screaming.

* * *

Kaylee looks up as the door opens and Shelby walks in. “Hey. Uh. I wasn’t expecting you back until tonight.” She gives a nervous laugh. “I haven’t had time to figure out how to apologize to you yet.”

“You don’t need to apologize.” Shelby slides her hands into the pockets of her jeans. “Are you almost done with your shift?”

“I just finished, actually. Alyssa and Greg already went home.”

“Good, good.” Shelby pauses. “Would you like to go get some breakfast?”

Kaylee’s eyes widen. “Oh. O-Okay. Sure. Yes. Absolutely.”

Shelby grins. “Awesome. I’ll wait for you to finish up, and then we can go?”

“Definitely.” Kaylee smiles. “I’d like that.”

Shelby nods and turns, looking out through the glass door of the front of the diner, waiting while Kaylee hurries to get ready to leave.

* * *

Alyssa groans softly as her phone rings, waking her up. She fumbles to answer it, and rasps, “Hello?”

_ “Lys?” _

Emma’s voice is ragged and out of breath, and there’s terror in her voice.

“Em?” Alyssa sits up and rubs at her eyes. “What’s going on?”

_ “Lys, I need you to get up and pack a bag. I’m coming to get you.” _

“What? What do you mean?”

_ “It’s not safe. I need to bring you to my place for a bit until things cool off. Please, Alyssa, I’m begging you. Please do this for me.” _

Alyssa tightens her grip on the phone, her body already reacting, getting out of bed and moving to pull some clothes out of her dresser. “You’re scaring me, Emma.”

Emma’s tone softens.  _ “I’m scared, too. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I’ll explain when I get there. Please, Lys, just stay there until I get to you. I’ll be as fast as I can. I… I’ll be there.” _

“Okay,” Alyssa whispers. “I’ll be ready.”

She sets her phone down and grabs a duffel bag out of her closet, shoving the clothes and a few other necessary items into it. She’s not entirely sure what she’ll need, but, in case she has to stay for a while, she wants to be prepared.

She changes out of her pajamas and into clothes, then she sits on her bed and waits.

* * *

Emma drives her Camaro as fast as she can without attracting attention, stopping hard in a parking spot in front of Alyssa’s apartment.

She gets out of the car, looking up at the building, rubbing her hands together nervously.

Before she can head inside, a Honda screeches to a stop behind her, and Carrie and another of Dee Dee’s people, Natalie, get out.

“You’re in Dee Dee’s territory, Nolan,” Natalie says. “You really have the audacity to come into her territory after the shit you pulled tonight?”

Emma raises her hands in front of her. “I didn’t do anything. I swear to God, I didn’t d-”

Carrie takes a gun out of her pocket and hits Emma hard across the face with it. “You really think Dee Dee will believe that? You complete bastard. People died tonight.”

Emma puts her hands on her knees to keep herself upright, spitting blood onto the concrete. “You think I don’t know that?” she asks quietly. “I told you morons that we’d be fucked if we did it your way, and nobody listened. Marcus is on you, not me. The guards you killed are on you, not me.”

“Yeah? Then why were the guards prepared for us? Why did they seem to know we were coming? Why did they have guns?”

Emma pales. “What?”

Carrie points the gun at Emma’s face. “You have a lot to answer for, Nolan. You’d better hope that Dee Dee likes the answers you give.”


	7. Chapter 7

“The cereal just went  _ everywhere. _ You should’ve seen the look on Greg’s face; it was hysterical.” Kaylee drums her fingers against her mug, her leg bouncing nervously. “I’m sorry. I ramble when I’m nervous, and I ramble when I’m hyper, and I’ve had way too much coffee.”

Shelby laughs and sets her hand on top of Kaylee’s. “You’re cute.”

Kaylee flushes. “Thanks.”

“I’ve thought so for a while, I just…” Shelby shrugs. “I’m not big on hitting on people while they work, I guess.”

“I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable or make you stop coming in. I was just so irritated when that guy started hitting on me that I wanted to show him a thing or two, and when you combine it with how badly I wanted to ask you out, I guess… I just found the nerve.”

Shelby grins. “I’ll have to give Nick a really sarcastic ‘thank you’ card tonight, then.”

Kaylee’s brow furrows. “You know his name?”

“Oh, uh, sure.” Shelby shrugs. “I’m there every night. I’m bound to overhear some things, right?”

“...Right. Right, of course.”

Shelby lifts Kaylee’s hand and kisses her knuckles. “Come on. I’ll drive you home.”

* * *

Emma doesn’t know how to make the pain stop.

Her glasses were removed an hour ago, there’s blood dripping into one of her eyes, her chest is aching.

She doesn’t know how much more she can take, but she doesn’t even have an answer.

A soft touch lifts Emma’s chin, and everything somehow gets so much worse when she sees the genuine sympathy in Dee Dee’s eyes.

“You know, you really are my favorite of Barry’s people,” she murmurs. “You have potential, Nolan. But one of my people died tonight. We were set up. And I have a responsibility to find out what happened. Just tell me what you did, and I’ll stop this.”

“Fuck you,” Emma whispers. “How many times do I need to say I don’t know anything?”

“You left the job and went straight into my territory. That says otherwise.” Dee Dee lefts go of her, and Emma’s head slumps forward, an exhausted sigh slipping from her lips. “Carrie.”

Carrie, standing near the door, steps forward. “Ma’am?”

“She has three minutes to give you some real answers. If she doesn’t, you can start really hurting her.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Please,” Emma says, pulling in vain at the bindings around her wrists. “Dee Dee,  _ please. _ I have nothing else to give. I’m telling you the truth. I didn’t  _ do _ anything.”

Dee Dee says nothing in response, merely nodding at Carrie.

Carrie draws a knife from a small sheath on her belt. “I’ve been thinking, Nolan. Where do you think I could stab you that it would hurt the most but you’d still bleed out slow enough for you to decide to make the wiser choice?” She stands in front of Emma, considering her for a moment. “Why don’t we see if we can find out?”

She pulls her hand back, aiming for the side of Emma’s abdomen, and Dee Dee turns away, starting for the door. Before the blade can make contact, Emma flinches and yells,  _ “Please, I just wanted to see my girl!” _

Carrie stops, so close her knife rips Emma’s shirt and draws a tiny knick of blood. She turns to Dee Dee, who has already started walking back to them.

“What did you say?” Dee Dee whispers.

“Please,” Emma begs, meeting Dee Dee’s gaze as best she can. “I was only at that building because I wanted to see my girl. I swear I did nothing wrong. I swear.”

Dee Dee pauses for a long moment, staring at her. “Alyssa Greene. The girl at the diner. She lives at that apartment complex.”

“How do you…”

“I know everything, Nolan, especially when it comes to who associated with other criminals lives in my territory.” Dee Dee turns to Carrie. “Have Jess and Natalie go get the girl. I don’t want any harm to come to her. We’ll deal with her when she’s here.”

Emma pales. “No. No, Dee Dee, please.” She pulls against her restraints.  _ “Please,” _ she begs. “Please, don’t hurt her, she’s not involved in this. Do whatever the fuck you want to me. I don’t care. Just please.  _ Please.” _

As Carrie leaves the room, Dee Dee tilts Emma’s head up again. “I’m sorry, Nolan,” she murmurs, her voice soft. “I just still don’t believe you.”

* * *

She’s been waiting too long, and it’s terrifying.

Alyssa paces her room, her phone in her hand, staring down at the screen. She’s tried to call Emma at least a dozen times, but she’s gotten no answer.

She doesn’t know who she’s supposed to call.

When she hears the knock on the door, a note of hope surges in her chest for the first time in hours. Alyssa bolts over to it and pulls it open, fully expecting to see Emma, but she freezes when she sees two people in the hallway who she recognizes but isn’t overly familiar with. “Uhm. Hello.”

Jess smiles, so politely that Alyssa doesn’t buy it. “Hi, Alyssa. Could you come with us?”

“Sorry. I’m waiting for someone.”

“I’m sure you are,” Jess says, still smiling. “Unfortunately, that doesn’t really matter. You’ll have to come with us.”

Alyssa’s grip on the door tightens. “No.”

The other woman, Natalie, sighs and opens her jacket, and Alyssa pales when she sees a gun on her waist. “You don’t really have that option,” Natalie murmurs. “Not if you have any interest in ever seeing Nolan again.”

Alyssa pauses for a long moment, weighing her options.

When she decides that she doesn’t really have any, she grabs her coat and goes with them.

* * *

Alyssa is taken to a warehouse that has been split up into various different rooms, and, when she’s led through the hallways, they take so many turns and go through so many doorways that, by the time they stop, she has no idea how to get back out.

The woman standing in front of her is older than her mother, a serious air to her that makes Alyssa feel like she’s six years old and she got caught trying to steal a cookie.

“Who are you?” Alyssa asks in a whisper.

Instead of answering, the woman says, “You have five minutes.” She grabs Alyssa’s arm, opens the door behind her, and shoves Alyssa inside.

* * *

The room is quiet, and empty aside from one chair in the middle.

Alyssa’s breath catches in her throat when she sees the person slumped in it, seemingly unconscious, hands bound behind her back, ankles bound to the legs of the chair, head forward so Alyssa can’t see her face.

“Emma,” Alyssa whispers.  _ “Emma!” _

She rushes over and takes Emma’s jaw lightly in her hands, lifting her head to see her. There’s a gag in her mouth, and Alyssa slides the fabric out, letting it fall down around Emma’s neck.

Emma opens her eyes as Alyssa feels tears form in her own. In a quiet, hoarse voice, Emma murmurs, “You look like hell, sweetheart.”

Alyssa gives a strained laugh. “You don’t get to make me laugh right now.” She uses her sleeve to wipe some of the blood from Emma’s brow. “Why are they doing this to you? I don’t understand.”

Instead of answering, Emma whimpers. “Please run. You have to run. I’ll never forgive myself if something happens to you. Please, Alyssa, you have to run.”

“I-I can’t, Emma,” Alyssa murmurs, resting her hand against Emma’s cheek. Her heart flips when Emma leans against it, looking close to breaking down. “This place is too big. I can’t remember how to get out, and there’s people with guns all over.”

Emma lets out a sob so helpless that Alyssa puts her other hand on Emma’s other cheek, desperate to give her whatever comfort she can manage. “Please,” she chokes out. “Alyssa, I love you.”

Alyssa stares at her. “What?”

“I know it’s a mistake. I know it wasn’t part of the plan. But it’s the truth, and I-I can’t…” Emma’s voice breaks. “Alyssa, please, I can’t take much more.”

“I-”

The door swings open, and the older woman comes in, followed closely by another Natalie.

“Your five minutes is up,” the woman says.

“What? What does that mean?” Alyssa looks down at Emma and sees desperation in her eyes. “What are you going to do to her?”

“That’s up to Nolan.” The woman snaps her fingers, and Natalie grabs Alyssa by the arm, pulling her towards the door.

“No,” Emma rasps. “No. Alyssa. Dee Dee, please.  _ Please!” _

Alyssa meets Emma gaze one more time, seeing pure panic on her face, then she’s removed from the room and the door is shut in her face.

* * *

Alyssa is taken to another room, just close enough that, at certain times, she can hear Emma screaming. She puts her hands against the wall, leaning against it with her head bowed, her eyes closed as she tries to think.

“Why are you doing this?” she asks, not bothering to look at Natalie.

“One of our people died tonight. We believe Nolan knows why.”

_ “Believe?” _ Alyssa turns on her heel, her hands dropping to her sides. “For fuck’s sake, you’ve been putting her through hell for  _ hours _ and you don’t even have  _ proof she did anything?” _

“Nolan is the leader. Unless it’s an order from Barry, nothing is done in that crew without her say-so. If one of them betrayed us, she would know.”

“You’re all a bunch of morons. Emma has more honor than that.”

Natalie snorts. “She’s a thief. Are you really that naive?”

“Maybe I am. But I know she doesn’t deserve what you’re doing to her.”

Natalie shrugs and sits down in a nearby chair, taking out a cigarette. “Whether she does or not? It’s what she’s got. Be thankful that Dee Dee doesn’t think you deserve to be hurt to make Nolan more cooperative.”

Alyssa swallows, but before she can respond, the door opens.

“Take Greene to Nolan’s car,” Jess says. “We’re done here.”

“What about Emma?” Alyssa demands.

“She’s being put in the backseat.” Jess snorts. “She’s all yours. For whatever that’s worth.”


	8. Chapter 8

Alyssa stands next to Emma’s Camaro, looking in on the woman passed out and lying along the backseat.

“You didn’t need to do this,” she murmurs. She turns to Dee Dee, standing a few feet away near the door to the warehouse. “Why her?”

“She’s Barry’s lieutenant. Most vocal against the plan.” Dee Dee shrugs. “And she was in my territory immediately after everything went sideways. As far as I was concerned, that was reason enough for her to be suspicious.”

Alyssa winces. “She was there for me. She just wanted to keep me safe.”

“Yes. I believe she did.”

“And you used that,” Alyssa says softly. “You brought me here to make her think you were going to hurt me. So that you could break her more.”

“Your presence was the best way for me to ensure honesty. She continued insisting that she was not involved even after your life was on the line. That tells me that she truly knows nothing.”

Alyssa shakes her head slowly. “You tortured her. For nothing.” Without waiting for a response, she opens the driver’s door and gets in.

Dee Dee catches the door before it can close. She hands Alyssa a small piece of paper with an address written on it. “Take her to Barry. He’ll get her any help she needs.” Dee Dee sighs quietly. “Tell him that someone will need to answer for Marcus. I’ll go through his entire gang if that’s what it takes to find out who did it.”

Alyssa’s body goes tense. “You would really do this to someone else?”

“I would have to, Ms. Greene. If I don’t find the real answer?” She jerks her thumb over her shoulder towards the warehouse. “One of them will simply _decide_ on one and take vengeance themselves. With a bullet.” She gives Alyssa a significant look. “And they are far less concerned about innocent bystanders than I am.”

Dee Dee lets the door go and walks back into the warehouse.

Alyssa watches her for a moment, then reads the address again, closes the door, and drives away.

* * *

Alyssa pulls to a stop in the parking lot of the junkyard, convinced that she’s been given the wrong address. She gets out of the car, confused, but she immediately freezes when the door of the small office swings open and Nick steps out.

“You’re… not Emma,” he says slowly.

“Brilliant observation. I need help.”

“This is a junkyard, not a mechanic, so-”

_“Nick, dammit, Emma needs help!”_

He stops mid-sentence, a serious look taking over his expression. He walks towards her quickly. “What’s going on? Where is she?”

“Backseat.”

Nick pulls the door open and lets out a low whistle. “Fuck, Em, what did you get yourself into?” he murmurs. “Get in the passenger seat, Alyssa.”

“But-”

“It’s alright. I just want to get her over to the others.”

Alyssa gets into the car, and Nick drives around the small office building, through the junkyard, towards a larger building mostly hidden from sight by the large piles of scrap materials.

“How did you find her?” Nick asks.

“I didn’t find her. I was taken to her.”

He glances at her. “That’s an interesting distinction.”

“I’m not sure I really want to get into it until I talk with Barry. I don’t want to be the reason whatever this is spirals out of control.”

Nick laughs. “Oh, this won’t end well. I can tell.”

* * *

Alyssa stands, alone, in an empty room.

When Nick brought her to the second building, the two other members of the nightly diner group retrieved Emma from the backseat and took her somewhere inside. Alyssa, meanwhile, was left in this room.

She paces, impatient, until Nick comes back.

“Where is Emma?” Alyssa demands.

Nick just steps aside, holding the door open. “Barry wants to speak with you.”

Alyssa pauses, a nervous feeling in her stomach. “Okay then,” she says quietly. “Take me to him.”

* * *

She’s directed to a door, and as she walks towards it, she hears a man’s voice on the other side.

_“I don’t give a shit what you’re doing. Get your ass over here. Now!”_

Alyssa pauses to see if he’s done, then knocks on the door. It opens, and the man standing in the room, gives her a serious look before letting her in.

“It’s alright, Alyssa. You’re safe here.”

“Am I? Where’s Emma?”

“Hayden and Kevin are checking her out. They know what they’re doing. If she has anything that needs real medical attention, they’ll tell me, and we’ll get it for her.” He sits down, gesturing for Alyssa to sit down across from him. She does, cautiously. “I’m Barry Glickman. I’m Emma’s boss.” He leans back in his chair. “You’re Alyssa Greene.”

“Yes. I am.”

“Why don’t you explain to me what happened tonight?”

Alyssa closes her eyes, takes in a breath, and starts to talk.

* * *

Emma wakes in a blind panic.

“Hey.” Hayden stands over her. “Emma. Welcome back to the land of the conscious. Are you-”

“Please,” Emma says, grabbing at Hayden’s shoulder. “Please, no, I can’t.”

“Em,” Hayden says firmly, trying to hold her down and keep her in the small bed she’s set up on. “You need to rest.” Emma thrashes so badly that her hand makes contact with the side of Hayden’s face, and Hayden almost lets go. “Jesus fucking… Kevin, fuck, I need help over here.”

Kevin rushes over and grabs Emma’s arm, helping Hayden hold her down. “Emma. Emma, look at me. Everything’s fine. You’re fine.”

“Alyssa,” Emma whimpers, her eyes glazed. “Please. Please. Please, Dee Dee, don’t.”

Hayden and Kevin exchange a look. “She’s losing it,” Hayden murmurs. She looks over her shoulder. “Nick, get Barry and Alyssa in here. _Now.”_

* * *

Alyssa’s heart breaks when she sees Emma, struggling against Hayden and Kevin, screaming at them and begging in a ramble that’s so frantic it’s completely nonsensical.

“What’s happening?” she asks Nick.

“She freaked out when she woke up. Started pleading for you.” He raises an eyebrow at Barry. “Something about Dee Dee.”

“Not now,” Barry murmurs. He pats Alyssa on the back. “Go. We’ll finish our conversation later. She needs you right now.”

“Thank you,” Alyssa says. She walks over to the bed, pausing only briefly before saying, “Could you give me some time? I think I can help.”

Hayden and Kevin stare at her for a moment, waiting for a nod from Barry before they get up and give her space. Emma collapses against the bed, panting, exhausted from the fight. Alyssa sits down next to her and takes her face in her hands.

“Hey,” she whispers, making her voice as soothing as she can while it’s about to break. “Hey. Look at me. I’m right here.”

Emma lets out a soft sob and clutches desperately at Alyssa’s shirt. “Please. Please tell me you’re real.”

Alyssa presses a gentle kiss to Emma’s lips, ignoring the sharp taste of blood. “I’m real. Okay? I’m real. You’re okay. It’s okay.”

“They… They made me think they were gonna…” Emma shudders and tightens her grip on Alyssa’s shirt, so much that her knuckles go white. “There was a camera in the room; Carrie saw me say… what I said to you… I-I thought… She told me they were going to kill you.”

Alyssa closes her eyes briefly before brushing her thumbs across Emma’s cheeks, wiping away a few tears. “It was just a threat, honey. They didn’t touch me. I promise you. I’m right here. I’m fine.” Her voice cracks. “I need you to let Hayden and Kevin take care of you, okay? I’m right here. I’ll be right here. I need to finish talking to Barry, but I’ll still be here the whole time, and I’ll come back to you as soon as I can. I promise you. I promise you.”

Emma whimpers again, and she pulls Alyssa towards her. “I’m sorry.”

“What are you sorry for?”

“I held out as long as I could without telling them about you, but it hurt too much. I’m so sorry.”

Alyssa’s vision blurs, tears coming to her eyes. She kisses Emma again, still softly. “You have nothing to apologize for. Do you understand me? You have _nothing_ to apologize for.”

Emma stares at her for a moment before loosening her grip on Alyssa’s shirt. Alyssa stands, brushing Emma’s hair off of her forehead. She steps back, allowing Hayden and Kevin to go back to their work.

Alyssa walks over to Barry, wiping at her eyes.

“How long?” he asks quietly. “How long have the two of you…?”

“About a year.” Alyssa clears her throat. “It’s just sex. It’s just… It’s just supposed to be sex.” Her hands tremble as she rubs them together. “I… I don’t know what to do.”

“Well, I-”

The door slams open.

“Seriously, are you people _fucking_ kidding me? I take one morning for myself, I leave you people alone for _five hours,_ and you can’t keep Nolan from getting herself almost killed? You can’t keep her out of trouble for _five fucking hours?_ Are you…”

The rant trails off in shock as Alyssa and the newcomer stare at each other.

“Oh. Uh. Hello… Alyssa…”

Alyssa swallows. “Shelby.”


	9. Chapter 9

“Shelby, what the hell are you…” Alyssa glances at Barry, who’s pointedly staring at the ceiling, and realization sinks in. “You’re one of these guys.”

Shelby gives a small grin and shrugs. “Yeah. I’m the lookout.”

“Load of good you did for Nolan,” Barry mutters.

“Hey, I can’t follow everybody every second of every day. You know that after a blowup like that I would normally be with her, but she told me that she just wanted to be alone. Emma would’ve noticed if I tried to follow her. She’s not that stupid.”

“Jesus,” Alyssa whispers, running a hand over her mouth.  _ “Jesus. _ Kaylee’s practically in love with you. This’ll kill her.”

The smile vanishes from Shelby’s face. “I don’t want to hurt her,” she says quietly. “I want to explain. Please. Give me a chance to do it properly?”

After a long moment, Alyssa nods. “I really hope you do.”

Shelby walks over to check on Emma, and Barry sets a hand on Alyssa’s shoulder. “You need to make a choice, kid.”

“A choice?”

“You’re too deep into this. You’re too involved. There’s only two ways forward here.” Barry sighs. “If you don’t want it, that’s fine. You have this chance to walk away, and we’ll move bases. But if you take that, you and Emma have to be done. It’s all the way or not at all.”

Alyssa swallows. “What’s the second option?”

“The second option is that, when Emma’s healed, she shows you the ropes.” Barry’s grip tightens on her shoulder. “And you don’t look back.”

“Oh.” Alyssa rubs her shaking hands together. “Can I… Just a minute? Can I think for just a minute?”

He lets go of her shoulder and pats her on the back. “Sure, kid. In fact, I’ll give you the rest of the day.” Barry turns and leaves the room, and Alyssa lets out a ragged breath, turning her attention back to Emma, passed out again while Hayden and Kevin attend to her.

* * *

Emma wakes with her head in Alyssa’s lap, gentle fingers carding through her hair.

“You still look like hell,” she mumbles.

Alyssa grins down at her, a soft look in her eyes. “You’re one to talk. What do you think you are, a boxer?”

“I’m a car thief.”

There’s a long pause. “Yeah,” Alyssa whispers. “Yeah, Em. I know.” She continues lightly brushing her fingers through Emma’s hair, grinning when Emma involuntarily stretches into the touch like a puppy. “You could’ve told me. It was, uh… It was a bit jarring to find out the woman you’re sleeping with is the lieutenant of a car theft ring via being taken out of your apartment to see her beaten to a pulp.”

Emma flinches. “I’m sorry.”

“Stop apologizing to me. You were kidnapped and tortured.  _ Please _ stop apologizing. My heart can’t take it.”

“I can’t help it,” Emma murmurs. “I’m supposed to protect you.”

Alyssa laughs softly and leans down, kissing her. “No, you idiot. It doesn’t work like that.”

“But you’re… You’re my…” She pauses, confused.

“I  _ am _ your girl,” Alyssa finishes gently. “That doesn’t mean nothing is ever going to happen, and it doesn’t mean that everything is your fault. I trust you, Emma. More than you know.”

Emma lets out a heavy sigh and cringes, her hand going to her chest as a sharp pain shoots through her torso.

“Yeah, I bet it hurts. You got a bunch of cracked and bruised ribs.” Alyssa presses a kiss to Emma’s forehead. “Barry gave me instructions for a real doctor in town who won’t ask questions. Once you have some rest I’m going to take you there so we can make sure everything is okay. They did a number on you.”

“I would’ve taken anything to keep them from hurting you.”

Emma watches as Alyssa swallows hard, fighting back tears. “Because you love me?”

Emma’s heart thuds painfully. “Yeah,” she whispers. “I’m sorry. I know that wasn’t part of the deal. I-”

Alyssa cuts her off by kissing her. “Sorry,” she laughs against Emma’s lips. “I swear I’m not trying to distract like usual. I just needed to kiss you.”

“...You’re not mad?”

“Mad? No. I’m not mad.” Alyssa goes back to stroking her fingers through Emma’s hair. “It’s… difficult. To comprehend having real feelings for a criminal. I was raised to be good, to be moral, to follow the rules. Everything was so easy when I could write you off as a sexy, dangerous hookup that I could quit at any time and just get my life back to normal afterwards.”

Emma pauses, unsure where Alyssa is going. “...But?”

“But I couldn’t quit you if I had to, Emma Nolan. I’m in love with you.”

“Yeah?” Emma gives a small grin. “You’re sure?”

“As sure as I’ve ever been about anything.” Alyssa looks up at Barry, who is back in the room, discussing something with Shelby and Nick. “I’m sure,” she whispers.


	10. Chapter 10

Alyssa steps into her apartment, rubbing her hands over her arms and shivering. Shelby steps in behind her and closes the door.

“We can’t stay long,” Shelby murmurs. “You should be safe regardless, but Dee Dee’s people will only let me be here for a short time.”

“If it’s not safe for you, you didn’t have to escort me.”

Shelby snorts out a laugh and leans against the wall. “That’s nice, but Emma would kill me if I let you come here alone. I’m more afraid of her than I am of Dee Dee.”

Alyssa walks into her room and picks up the bag she had already packed, putting a few extra things into it.

“Can I ask you a question?” Shelby calls from the other room.

“I suppose?”

“You and Nolan. How did that even happen?”

Alyssa slings her bag over her shoulder and walks back out of her room. “I’m not her usual type?”

Shelby smirks. “You’re an attractive woman. You’re her type. But you don’t really seem like the type to go for the rulebreakers.”

“Rulebreakers? Is that what they’re calling it now?”

“Among other things.”

Alyssa runs her fingers up and down the strap of her duffel bag. “There were these teenagers who kept hanging around the diner. Causing problems. Just generally being a nuisance, and harassing us, especially me and Kaylee. Everybody was too afraid to say anything, because those particular kids were known around the neighborhood to have tempers and to be aggressive if confronted. They used to yell stuff at us while we walked to our cars after our shifts. Then this one day they followed me while they were yelling, and they basically had me surrounded near my car, and I didn’t know how to get them to leave me alone. But Emma was there, and she just walked up to them and calmly asked why they were bothering me. I’ve never seen people look that afraid that fast. They left, and they haven’t bothered us since.”

Shelby lets out a soft whistle. “Jesus.” She rubs the back of her neck. “If they do come back, let me know, and I’ll teach them some respect.”

“Noted.” Alyssa smiles slightly. “I knew right from that moment that there was something dangerous about her. Nobody could scare those guys off with just words without being something scary themselves. But… I don’t know. Something about her just. I was drawn to her. I wanted her. I still do.”

“Since I’m making you tell secrets, do you want one from me?”

“Sure.”

Shelby looks down at her hands, fidgeting with them. “I’ve wanted Kaylee from the first moment I saw her. I just didn’t know how I was supposed to do something about it while I was also trying to do my job.”

Alyssa studies her for a moment. “What are you going to do about it  _ now?” _

“I’m not sure yet. I don’t want her to hate me.”

“She’ll hate you if you lie to her,” Alyssa says softly.

Shelby flinches. “Yeah. But I think it’s too late to avoid that.”

“Doesn’t mean you need to  _ keep _ lying to her, though. That might spare you.” Alyssa picks up her jacket. “It’s something to consider, at the very least.”

“It is.” Shelby sighs and heads for the door. “It definitely is.”

* * *

“Thank you for going with her, Shelby,” Emma says, sitting on the couch in her apartment as she watches Alyssa take her bag into the bedroom.

“Of course. I owe you that much.”

Emma looks up at her. “This isn’t your fault.”

Shelby shrugs and puts her hands in her pockets. “I’m supposed to have your back. You’re Barry’s lieutenant; you have his back. I’m  _ your _ lieutenant…”

“...and I told you that I didn’t need your help. I gave you an order, Shelb. If nothing had gone wrong and I had found you following me to Alyssa’s place, do you really think I would’ve been happy?”

“No, but you wouldn’t have gotten your ass kicked.”

Emma laughs softly. “Carrie and Natalie were convinced that I had gotten Marcus killed. They would’ve found me no matter what.”

“How could you have gotten Marcus killed? The guards shot him.”

“I don’t know. Apparently they think somebody warned the guards that there would be a robbery or something. Set us all up.”

“Oh.” Shelby takes her hands back out of her pockets and fidgets with the string of her sweatshirt. “That would be stupid of you. You were  _ there. _ You could’ve been killed.”

“Yeah, I know. I have no idea what the hell they’re thinking.” Emma sighs and gingerly runs a hand through her hair. “Alright. You should get going. It’s late. We all need some sleep.”

Shelby nods. “Be careful, Nolan.”

“You too, Gonzales.”

Alyssa walks out of the bedroom after Shelby leaves. “You really couldn’t tell me?”

“Sort of defeats the purpose of a secret lookout if everyone knows,” Emma says with a grin.

“Mm. Fair enough.” Alyssa sits down next to her, and Emma’s grin vanishes.

“Look, Lys, I… If this is too much for you, if all of this bullshit is what pushes things over the edge, I’ll understand. I… I’ll get it.”

Alyssa puts her hand on Emma’s shoulder and gently guides her down, pulling until Emma is lying down on her back with her head resting in Alyssa’s lap. “I told you I’m sure about you. That I love you. I wasn’t joking when I said those things, Em.” She strokes her fingers over Emma’s hair. “Even if that means I have to join you.”

“...What? What does that mean?”

“Barry gave me an ultimatum. He said that I’m in too far. I have to either cut myself off from all of this entirely, cut myself off from  _ you _ entirely, or… or, when you’re better, you start showing me how to be a real part of things.”

“Alyssa-” Emma tries to sit up suddenly and yelps, pain shooting through her torso. As she clutches at her chest, Alyssa grabs her and holds her, kissing the top of her head.

“Shh,” Alyssa murmurs. “Em, it’s alright. I already made my choice. I told Barry I’m going to do it.”

“He should’ve asked me. He should never have made you choose that. It’s not fair.” Emma swallows. “I-I… I didn’t want this for you.”

Alyssa strokes her cheek. “I know you didn’t.” She kisses her softly. “When they brought me into that room, when I saw you like that, I was so scared. Not about where I was. Not about what would happen to me. Not even about the situation. I was scared for what they were going to do to you. For what had already been done to you.” She rests her forehead against Emma’s and closes her eyes. “I don’t know what I would have done if I had lost you. I’d risk my life to keep you, Emma Nolan. Why should I care about risking my soul, too?”

Emma shakes her head slowly. “You baffle me sometimes. You know that?”

“It’s a special privilege.” Alyssa’s hand skims down the front of the sweatshirt Nick gave her to replace her bloodied flannel. “A lot of things are my privilege.”

“Do you  _ want _ me to break my ribs?” Emma asks with a soft groan.

“No.” Alyssa brushes the ghost of a kiss against Emma’s lips but doesn’t actually kiss her. “It’s just fun to tease you, especially since I’m staying here for a little while.”

Emma’s hands tighten. “This is cruel. You’re cruel.”

Alyssa grins and lightly kisses the tip of her nose. “I know.”

* * *

Kaylee picks up her plate and walks over to take Shelby’s. “Hey. Are you okay? You’ve been quiet all night.”

“Yeah. Sorry. I’m just distracted.” Shelby reaches out and takes Kaylee’s wrist, brushing her thumb against her skin. “You don’t have to do that, you know,” she murmurs. “You’re not at work. This is your home. You don’t need to wait on me. I can wash a dish.”

“Force of habit, I guess,” Kaylee says with a laugh.

Shelby stands, still holding Kaylee’s wrist. “Let me help, Kaylee,” she says softly. “Please?”

Kaylee blinks, confused, but nods without further argument. Shelby takes the dishes over to the sink and turns the water on, and Kaylee watches her for a long moment before saying, “Are you sure you’re okay? You just… It seems like more than distraction. You seem like something’s wrong.”

“I…” Shelby sighs and adjusts the water temperature a few times. “I need to tell you something. And I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell you all night. I’ve been trying to figure it out for a while, actually.”

Kaylee picks her wine glass up from the table and walks over to lean against the counter next to Shelby. “It can’t be  _ that _ bad. As long as you’re not married. That would be pretty bad.”

Shelby gives a strained laugh. “I’m not married.”

“There, see? Then it can’t be that bad.”

“I’m not sure,” Shelby says quietly. She stares at the water. “It’s about my job.”

“Oh.” Kaylee takes a sip of her wine, letting it linger in her mouth before swallowing it and setting her glass down. She waits, watching the struggle on Shelby’s face, the growing fear, until she leans over and turns the water off. “Shelby,” she murmurs, turning her towards her and grabbing a towel to dry off her hands. “It’s okay.”

“I don’t know if it will be,” Shelby whispers.

Kaylee sets the towel down, then rests her palm against Shelby’s cheek. “Shelby. If you’re worried about me breaking up with you because you’re a car thief like the others, don’t be. It’s not going to happen.”

Shelby pales. “What?”

Kaylee scoffs and rolls her eyes. “How stupid do you think I am? You show up with a different car every week, and you take the booth with the best visuals on both the rest of the diner and the outside. I figured it out months ago.”

“I-I… Uh… But… But why…” Shelby swallows, her eyes wide. “Why kiss me if you…”

“None of that changes the way you act. The way you treat me every night.” Kaylee smirks. “How hot you are.”

“Oh,” Shelby says, her voice weak.

“Are you okay?” Kaylee lowers her hand. “I’m sorry. Was that not what you were going to tell me? I was going to wait until you could do it yourself, but I didn’t want you to keep worrying about how I would react when I really care more about you than I care about-”

Shelby interrupts her, kissing her hard on the mouth. “I care about you, too,” she murmurs against Kaylee’s lips. “So much. I came to the diner that morning because I was worried that something might happen and I wanted to make sure you were safe.”

“Why that mor-” Kaylee takes a small step back. “Oh, God,” she whispers. “That robbery at the docks. That was you. That was all of you.”

“It wasn’t supposed to be like that. I swear to God. It wasn’t just our group involved, and something happened.” Shelby shakes her head. “I wasn’t there. I don’t know what went down, but… I swear, Kaylee. That’s not what we are.”

Kaylee stares at her.

“Please, Kaylee. Give me a chance to prove what I am.  _ Who _ I am.”

“I already know who you are,” Kaylee says quietly.

Shelby flinches and looks away. “Okay.” She takes a step towards the door, but she doesn’t get any further before Kaylee grabs her and pulls her back, kissing her.

“I didn’t say it was a problem.”

Shelby blinks, startled. Then a slow grin comes to her lips. “No. I suppose you didn’t.”

She puts her hands on Kaylee’s hips and pulls her into a kiss, and Kaylee grabs her by the collar, tugging her towards the bedroom.


	11. Chapter 11

Alyssa stirs at the sound of Emma’s voice.

“Uh-huh. And what exactly did you say in response?” Emma pauses. “Really? Wow. Well, _of course_ I will just _do my best.”_ She snickers. “Uh-huh. Well, have fun, Gonzales.”

Alyssa rolls over and watches as Emma puts her phone back down on her nightstand. “What was that about?”

“So, Shelby told Kaylee about her involvement. She’s okay with it. But she asked Kaylee to - get this - ask me if I could stop putting my hands on while we’re in the diner.” Emma snickers again. “She doesn’t know about us yet.”

“Hm.” Alyssa moves closer to her, fingers toying with the waistband of Emma’s pajamas. “Well, Ms. Cracked Ribs, as we’ve discussed, you can’t touch me anyway.”

“In fairness, I don’t think that’s really-”

Alyssa puts her hand over Emma’s mouth. “You _promised Shelby,_ Emma. Looks like you can’t touch me.”

Emma glares at her. “Thssntfr.”

“What was that?” Alyssa lowers her hand from Emma’s lips. “I didn’t hear it.”

“This isn’t fair.” Emma frowns. “First of all, that was only about what we do at the diner. Second of all, what did I do to deserve this?”

Alyssa kisses her softly. “I love you.” She kisses her again. “I’m incredibly glad that I didn’t lose you.” She kisses her yet again. “I’m trying to keep us both entertained so that neither of us gets lost, because we’re very stupid and can’t stop having sex.”

Emma pauses. “You know what? That’s honestly fair.”

“It’ll be weird. Going back to the way things were.” Alyssa rests her forehead against Emma’s, threading her fingers through Emma’s hair. “I’m starting to get used to feelings.”

“Nobody said we had to go back to the old way. We can have fun without relying on me pretending to be a jackass to you.”

“Is it wrong that it’s a little hot when you are, though?”

Emma laughs and shakes her head. “You’re trouble, aren’t you?”

“You’re one to talk, car thief.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Emma brushes her nose against Alyssa’s. “You’ll have to learn to be one too, you know. If you’re going to be a part of this.”

“I know.” Alyssa rests her head against the pillow, smiling softly. “The good news is that I’ll have a great teacher.”

* * *

“Where’s their leader tonight?” Greg wonders as he fills a glass of orange juice. “She’s always with her little pack.”

Alyssa rolls her eyes at him. “God forbid one person doesn’t show up at their regularly scheduled time.”

“I just don’t trust it.” Greg laughs. “Unless she finally went and got herself killed.”

Alyssa shoves him, making him spill most of the glass over his uniform. “How about you have some basic fucking human decency?” she snarls. “Whether you like them or not, they’re still _people.”_

“Why do you care so much?” he demands. “They treat you like garbage!”

Alyssa squares her jaw, her hands clenched into fists. Instead of responding, she turns and walks away, storming off towards the back of the diner.

* * *

Alyssa sits in the small back hallway, her shoulders trembling, hands over her face as she cries.

“Lys?” Kaylee’s voice is quiet, and she’s cautious as she takes a seat next to her. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“I hadn’t really let it hit me,” Alyssa whispers. “I hadn’t really let it all out. And then Greg laughing, joking about Emma getting herself killed…”

“What are you talking about?”

“Let Shelby off the hook for this one. She knew we’ve been keeping things secret, and I don’t think she wanted to risk telling you otherwise.” Alyssa gives a soft sigh and rests her head against the wall. “The leader. The blonde. I’ve been sleeping with her. The way she acts with me in here is all fake, and inside joke of sorts just meant to keep up appearances.”

“Jesus Christ, Alyssa,” Kaylee murmurs. “Why?”

“It was just meant to be fun. But she could’ve died the other night, and I… I realized that I love her. I’m in love with her. And I don’t think I’d survive losing her.” Alyssa rubs at her eyes. “I haven’t really let myself _feel it_ yet. Feel the fear, how much it hurt to see Emma like that.”

Kaylee takes one of her hands and squeezes it. “This thing I have with Shelby is so new, but… I think I can say with confidence that these people are a lot tougher than they look.”

Alyssa gives a small laugh. “I think you and I may be a lot tougher than we look, too. Or a hell of a lot stupider. Why are we doing this to ourselves?”

“I don’t know about you, but I’m just hoping for a new car.”

“No you aren’t,” Alyssa says, playfully punching Kaylee’s leg. “You surrendered to that woman the first time you saw her.”

“True.” Kaylee sighs and leans her head back. “I guess I just… I don’t know. Maybe you and I were never actually the greatest people to begin with. Maybe we just like the promise of danger. Maybe we just like Emma and Shelby more than we care about what’s technically right and wrong.”

“What does that make us?”

Kaylee pauses. “Lovesick idiots?”

“Aw. Love already, Klein? That’s so gay.”

“Oh, shut up, Greene.”

* * *

Emma reaches over and takes Alyssa’s hand as they walk into the main building of the junkyard. “How are you feeling?” she asks quietly.

“I’m good,” Alyssa says. “I’m a little nervous. Are you sure I’m supposed to be here before anything is official?”

“Barry said he wanted you here. This isn’t a planning meeting or anything.” Emma kisses Alyssa on the cheek. “Besides. He knows that I trust you. I don’t trust easy. That’s enough for him.”

They take seats, side by side, towards the back of the room, and the others fill in the rest of the space. When Barry walks in, he stops next to them and gives Emma a gentle pat on the shoulder.

“How are you feeling, kid?”

“It hurts, but I’m alive.” Emma gives Alyssa a playful headbutt against the side of her head. “This one refuses to let me hurt myself worse, so at least we’re in the clear there.”

Alyssa looks up at Barry and deadpans, “She’s very trying at times.”

Barry laughs. “Yeah. You’re gonna fit right in here.”

He walks up to the front of the room, and Alyssa kisses Emma slowly. “You’re a pain in the ass.”

“I know,” Emma says cheerfully.

“Gross, Nolan.” Shelby takes the seat next to them. “Are you gonna be a puppy forever now?”

“Just for today. I’ll go back to kicking your ass once I don’t have paper mache ribs.”

“I _guess_ that’s fair.”

Barry clears his throat loudly, and the room falls silent. “Here’s the deal. We can’t go into Dee Dee’s territory for the foreseeable future.”

“What the hell is she mad about?” Hayden demands. “It was _her_ piss poor plan that went sideways.”

“A plan we _both_ agreed on,” Barry points out. “And one that got one of her people killed. The problem is, those guards were not supposed to be armed. There was no reason for them to be there like that. It’s brought completely unnecessary attention onto both of our groups, and it’s going to bring all of our operations to a standstill for a while.” He holds up a hand to silence the immediate eruption of noise. “Look. I need you all to be honest with me, and I need that honesty _now._ I might not be able to get Dee Dee to back off unless they get answers, and right now, they think someone from our group tipped the guards off that there was going to be a robbery. They’re not going to back off until they get an explanation. I need to know, _right now,_ if anybody even _might_ have done something _close_ to that, because I need to figure out how to fix it.”

There’s silence in response to his words. Emma sees Alyssa glance at her, and she reaches over and squeezes her hand.

“No one has anything to say?” Barry looks slowly around the room before sighing. “Okay. Good. Then I’ll work on sorting things out. Just… be careful these next few months. Alright? All of you. I don’t want anybody to take any unnecessary risks.” He points at Alyssa. “Ms. Greene, I have a deal with Dee Dee that you are allowed to come and go to your apartment, and you can be escorted by one person, but that’s it. You aren’t allowed anywhere outside of two mapped out routes, and you have to go directly there and directly back out of the area. With that being said, I think it would be safest if you stayed with Emma as much as possible until things cooled down. I trust Dee Dee’s word, but I wouldn’t put it past her people to claim that they made a mistake.”

“If Emma’s okay with that, I’m okay with that.”

Emma nods immediately. “She’ll be safe.”

“Good.” Barry runs a hand through his hair. “Alright. I’m going to try to keep contact limited while I sort things out. Things need to cool off, both with the police and with Dee Dee. Stay calm, take care of each other, and keep out of trouble. Everything will be fine. We’ll regroup and talk again in a few months. Okay?”

As everyone nods, Emma reaches across Alyssa - cringing a bit as she tweaks her ribs the wrong way - and pats Shelby on the arm. “You’d better keep in touch, Gonzales. No hiding. I know where to find your girlfriend, and I’m sure Alyssa can get her to yell at you if you go radio silent.”

Shelby laughs. “You’re the one who I’m worried about. Once your ribs heal, will you and Alyssa ever go outside again?”

Alyssa glares at her. “Hey.”

Shelby raises her hands in front of her. “I’m just saying.”

“Yeah, yeah. Go away.” As Shelby walks over to talk to Kevin, Emma kisses Alyssa on the cheek. “Are you okay? With basically being banned from your own home?”

“I mean, sure it sucks, but… honestly? I’d rather be able to be with you and be blocked from free access to my apartment than not be with you, so.” Alyssa shrugs. “It’ll be fine.”

Emma grins and stands up. “Come on, then. Let’s go home.”

* * *

**\- FOUR MONTHS LATER -**

Alyssa groans as she hears the incessant knock on the door. “Em, I swear to God, I’m going to kill whoever that is.”

Emma stops the pattern of kisses she’s in the process of leaving down the middle of Alyssa’s stomach and shifts back up to meet her gaze. “We could.”

Alyssa rolls her eyes and smacks her shoulder. “I was kidding.”

“Right now? I wasn’t.”

There’s another loud knock.

“Well, honey, the faster you answer the door the faster we can get back to what we’re doing.”

Emma sighs loudly and gets up, putting on jeans and tugging a thin sweatshirt over her head. She goes to the door of her apartment and opens it, and all of her irritation vanishes.

_“ALYSSA! GET OUT HERE!”_ she yells towards the bedroom.

She grabs Shelby’s shoulder, holding her steady as she sways a little on her feet, her eyes blank with shock and her clothes covered in blood.

“Where is it?” Emma lifts Shelby’s shirt, baffled, looking for an injury. “Shelby, look at me, where is the blood coming from?”

Shelby’s dull gaze lifts and meets Emma’s. “Please,” she whispers. “Help her.”


	12. Chapter 12

Emma sits in the waiting room of the hospital, staring at the floor as Shelby paces in front of her. “Shelby. Sit down.”

“I don’t want to sit down.”

_ “Sit. Down.” _

Shelby drops into the chair next to Emma, anxiously rubbing her bloodstained hands together. “I-I… I don’t… I need to  _ do something.” _

“There’s nothing for you to do right now except wait,” Emma says softly. “Tell me what happened.”

“Jesus Christ, Em, I don’t even know. We were just walking back to my place after dinner. Suddenly I hear somebody say my name, and I haven’t even turned around before they’re shooting at me.” Shelby pauses, her voice trembling. “O-Only I’m not the one they shot.” She rests her forehead on her hands. “Christ. Jesus fucking Christ.”

Emma rests her hand on Shelby’s back. “We’ll figure it out,” she murmurs. “Okay? It’ll be alright. We’ll figure it out.” She looks up as Alyssa walks back over to them. “Hi.”

“So, I’m still down as Kaylee’s emergency contact, which is good because I can get information out of these people.” Alyssa sits down on Shelby’s other side.

“Why are you…”

Alyssa waves off Emma’s question. “Long story. The point is, she’s out of surgery. From what they told me, she’s still critical, but as long as she gets through the rest of the night they’re optimistic.”

Shelby lets out a ragged sigh and slumps forward a bit, her weight going onto her knees. Emma keeps her hand on her back, not saying anything when she hears Shelby start to cry.

“The others are here,” Alyssa says softly, nodding towards the door.

Emma looks over and sees Nick and Kevin walk in. Emma gets up, letting Kevin take a seat next to Shelby, and Nick stands, his arms folded across his chest. “Hayden went down to the scene to keep an eye on things,” he says quietly. “She’ll let us know if there are any updates.”

“You know damn well who did this, Nick. Shelby was the only one of us who wasn’t there that night. If those bastards are looking for someone to blame for Marcus, she’s the easiest target.”

“Don’t even go there, Em. You know that Barry would be pissed.”

Emma grits her teeth, frustrated, but nods. “Yeah. I know.” She sits back down, this time next to Alyssa, and rests her head back, closing her eyes and sighing.

* * *

Alyssa rubs her hands over her face and groans softly, lifting her head off of Emma’s shoulder. “Did I fall asleep?”

Emma leans over and presses a gentle kiss to her cheek. “Yeah, sweetheart, I think you drooled on my shirt.”

Alyssa smacks her leg. “Anything new?”

“No. I would’ve woken you.”

“I figured.” Alyssa stretches as much as she can in the uncomfortable chair. “Do you want some coffee?”

“Yeah, that might-” Emma goes stiff next to her.

Alyssa blinks. “Em?” She frowns when she sees the other woman staring, eyes wide, at the doorway to the waiting room. When she follows her gaze, her stomach drops.

Carrie is standing in the doorway.

Nick is on his feet in an instant. “What the fuck do you want?”

Carrie holds up her hand. “I’m not here to start a fight. I just wanted to see how Kaylee is doing. Dee Dee sent me.”

“Why do you even care? Want to know how well your people did?”

She gives Nick a hard look. “If one of my people did this,” she says quietly, “it was  _ not _ with Dee Dee’s permission. She and Barry are trying to prevent a war. Not start one.”

The rest of Carrie’s words are drowned out as Alyssa turns her attention back to Emma, whose hands are clenched tightly on the arms of her chair. Her breathing is short and shallow, and, despite the coldness of the room, Alyssa can see sweat forming on Emma’s brow.

She’s about to ask her what’s going on, but before she can, Emma stands up suddenly and bolts out of the other door.

* * *

Alyssa finds Emma in an empty room, sitting on the floor with her knees pulled up to her chest, gasping for breath and trembling. “Emma,” she whispers. She kneels down in front of her and gently sets her hands on the sides of Emma’s legs. “Em, what’s going on?”

Emma whimpers and sets her head back against the wall. “I don’t know. I don’t know. I can’t breathe. Everything hurts.”

Alyssa moves one hand to the side of Emma’s neck, the skin cool but damp with sweat, heartbeat pounding rapidly. “Emma,” she says, slow and calm. “Take a deep breath for me, okay? In and out. Take a few. It’s okay. You’re okay. Just in and out.”

They sit in the dark for a few minutes, just breathing, Alyssa keeping as much contact with Emma as she can, coaxing her until the shaking starts to ease.

Emma lets out a soft sob and clutches at Alyssa’s hands, resting on her knees. “What the hell is happening to me?”

“Baby,” Alyssa says gently, “I think you were having a panic attack.”

“Over  _ what? _ All I did was see… see Carrie.” Emma swallows.

“Yeah.” Alyssa kisses the back of Emma’s hand. “And the last time you saw her, you were being beaten.”

“I’ve been beaten worse than that before. That’s how I ended up in foster care. It doesn’t make sense for me to react this badly to it now.”

Alyssa pauses. “Someday, we’re going to rent a hotel room with a very large, very expensive bathtub, and you’re going to explain that statement to me while we drink a lot of wine.”

Emma blinks at her. “Okay.”

“For now, though…” Alyssa leans forward and presses a soft kiss to Emma’s lips. “Darling. She also told you that she was going to kill me.”

She feels Emma shudder underneath her. “Yeah,” Emma murmurs. “I tried to beg her not to hurt you. I begged her so much that she gagged me to try to make me shut up.”

Alyssa swallows, feeling tears threaten in her eyes.

Emma closes her eyes and leans forward, resting her forehead against Alyssa’s. “I’m so tired,” she whispers. “I’m just so tired.”

“I know, baby.” Alyssa brushes her fingers through Emma’s hair. “I know.”

The door swings open and Alyssa leans back, squinting up at Nick.

“Hey,” he says quietly. “Sorry to interrupt. Kaylee is out of critical and moved to serious, and the hospital’s visiting hours are over, and Shelby’s not too keen on leaving. Kevin and I need some help.”

Alyssa waits for Emma to nod before she does as well. “We’ll be there in a minute, Nick,” Emma says. Once he leaves, she slowly gets up, leaning on Alyssa for support.

“What do we do?” Alyssa asks.

“We take Shelby back to my place. She’ll be safer there.” Emma gives her a sideways glance. “Might be less safe for us.”

Alyssa shakes her head. “I don’t care. I want to make sure she’s okay.”

Emma nods and kisses her. “Then let’s get the hell out of this place.”

* * *

Shelby slips out of Emma’s apartment at three in the morning, when she knows Emma and Alyssa are both asleep.

She walks through the city streets, hands in her pockets, the hood of her sweatshirt raised.

When she walks into Dee Dee’s territory, she goes unchallenged, until she gets to the spot she’s been heading for.

She pulls her handgun out of the inside pocket of her sweatshirt and raises it before announcing her presence.

“Natalie,” she says quietly.

The woman turns around and laughs. “Figures. Did I really manage to miss you entirely? Well, Jess and Carrie always were the-”

“You missed me. You didn’t miss Kaylee.”

Natalie pauses. “Who?”

_ “Kaylee!” _ Shelby takes a furious step closer, her hand trembling. “The woman I was with! The woman I-I… You shot a completely innocent person and for  _ what?” _

“You love her, don’t you?” Natalie smirks. “Well, maybe I did hit the right person after all.”

“I swear to fucking God-”

“Marcus was like a brother to me. We grew up together. He was my best friend, and you got him killed. It’s only fair for me to take something you love away from you and make you live with the consequences.”

Shelby stares at her. “I didn’t even  _ do anything.  _ I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Of course you’re going to say that.” Natalie shakes her head. “You’re really never going to admit your guilt, are you?”

“I won’t admit to something I didn’t do.”

Natalie gives a small sigh, and Shelby suddenly notices that the other woman’s hands are still in her pockets. “Then you really never will learn.”

* * *

Emma stops at the corner of a street, trying to catch her breath. “Dammit, Shelby,” she mutters. “Where the fuck are you?”

She glances at her watch, checking to see how long they’ve both been out of the apartment.

Her attention is redirected when she hears gunshots a few blocks away.


	13. Chapter 13

Emma drags Shelby through the streets by the back of her sweatshirt, leading her towards the apartment.

“Em, I-”

“Not a word. Not  _ one word.” _ She pushes Shelby towards the fire escape, waiting for her to start up it before climbing up herself.

* * *

Inside her apartment, Emma sits Shelby down in one of the kitchen chairs and retrieves a first aid kit from the bathroom. “Shirt off.”

Shelby blinks at her. “What?”

“You’re not bleeding all over my kitchen, Gonzales. I stopped it long enough to keep you from dripping anything on the way back, but it’s not going to last the rest of the night. Shirt off.”

After a long pause, Shelby pulls her sweatshirt over her head. Emma takes it from her and put it in a plastic bag. “I’m going to give you new clothes to wear. Tomorrow I’m going to take everything you’re wearing now over to the yard and burn it, and I’m putting the gun in the compactor.”

“E-Emma, I… You shouldn’t…”

_ “Shut. Up.” _ Emma grabs Shelby’s jaw. “You don’t say anything. You don’t know anything. If someone asks, we were here all night, awake and talking because you couldn’t sleep. Don’t go into more detail than that. Detail is suspicious.”

Shelby just nods, and Emma crouches down to clean the deep gash in her side.

“You’re fucking lucky. Another few inches and she could’ve killed you.” Emma shakes her head. “What were you thinking?”

“Thinking? I wasn’t  _ thinking _ . I just kept seeing Kaylee’s blood on my hands, over and over, and when Carrie told me who had done it-”

_ “Carrie _ told you?” Emma interrupts sharply. “And you believed her?”

“She was only confirming what I already thought. I recognized Natalie’s voice. I just didn’t want to believe it until Carrie backed it up.

“And what then? Was your whole entire plan to just go and shoot her?”

“I don’t  _ know!” _ Shelby tries to stand up, but Emma grabs her shoulder and makes her stay where she is while she presses a bandage onto Shelby’s side. “I don’t know, I just… I just started walking, I was told that they wouldn’t protect her if I wanted to confront her, and I… I just… Fuck, Emma, what have I done?”

“You didn’t do anything. Remember? Hey!” Emma grabs Shelby’s jaw again. “You did nothing. You weren’t there. You know nothing. Say it.  _ Say it!” _

Shelby swallows and, mechanically, repeats, “I did nothing. I wasn’t there. I know nothing.”

“Good.” Emma shoves the trash into the bag Shelby’s shirt is in, then stands up. “I’m going to go get you clothes. Do  _ not _ go anywhere. Understand?”

Shelby gives a tired nod. “I understand.”

* * *

Alyssa walks back into the waiting room of the hospital, her hand loosely in Emma’s. “Em? Were you smoking?”

“Huh?”

“You smell like smoke.”

Emma brings the collar of her shirt towards her face and breathes in. “Fuck,” she mutters. “Uhm, I’ll be back in a minute. I want to go change.”

Alyssa’s brow furrows. “What? Why?”

“It’s a hospital, Lys, I don’t want to smell like smoke in a hospital.” Emma grins at her and kisses her on the cheek before leaving the room.

Alyssa bites her lip, worried, but she takes a seat next to Shelby without comment.

“Thanks for letting me stay last night,” Shelby says quietly.

“Of course. There’s no way we wouldn’t have.”

Shelby nods. “I-”

“Shelby Gonzales?”

They look up at the man standing in front of them, in a suit with a badge attached to his belt.

“I’m Detective Smith. Could I ask you a few questions about what happened?”

“U-Uhm. Yeah. Sure.”

Shelby follows him to the other side of the room, and Alyssa mostly zones out as Shelby goes through what had led up to Kaylee getting shot.

Her attention focuses again, however, when the detective says, “You know, last night, a member of a local car theft ring was shot to death.”

“Oh?” Shelby frowns. “Do you think it’s related to Kaylee?”

“I do. I think this gang member is the one who shot her.”

“Oh wow. That’s insane.”

The detective leans back in his chair. “Do you know anything about it?”

Shelby’s eyes widen. “About… About someone getting killed? God no.”

“Where were you last night? Around three in the morning?”

“I stayed at my friend’s place. Emma Nolan. At three a.m. we would’ve probably still been awake. She and I were chatting for a while; it was hard to sleep when I was so worried.”

Alyssa frowns and stares down at the ground, thinking.

She knows Shelby’s lying.

It scares her to wonder why.

* * *

Alyssa stands in Emma’s kitchen, casually drying a plate. “Hey, honey?”

“Yeah?”

“Were you and Shelby up late last night?”

Emma walks into the room, a nervous glint in her eyes. “Uhm… Yeah. Why?”

“Hm. That’s what she told the detective who questioned her today.”

“Why was a detective questioning her?” Emma demands.

Alyssa sets the plate down and turns slowly. “Well,  _ sweetheart, _ probably because her girlfriend was shot in front of her.”

Emma’s jaw tenses. “Right. Right.”

Alyssa watches as Emma takes a toothpick out of a box on the counter and absentmindedly sticks it into her mouth. “You know,” she says softly. “You haven’t done that in months.”

“Old habits die hard, I guess.”

“Yeah. I guess they do.” Alyssa starts to go back to what she’s doing, then slams the towel down on the counter and rounds on Emma. “Don’t fucking lie to me, Emma Nolan.”

Emma takes a step back, startled. “Lys-”

“Jesus.  _ Jesus. _ You killed Natalie, didn’t you?”

“No. No, Alyssa, I didn’t.”

“Well then what the hell is-”

“I covered it up.”

Alyssa stares at her for a long moment. “Shelby,” she whispers.

Emma winces and nods. “I don’t think that was the plan,” she murmurs. “But regardless, it was the result.” She takes a few tentative steps towards Alyssa. “I can’t fix it. I can’t take it back. But I can try to save a friend.”

“I knew that you being up all night sounded wrong. I can tell when you’re not in bed. I woke up when you got up, but I knew there was no way that you had stayed up talking for most of the night.”

“She went out the fire escape to avoid the camera on the front door of the building. I heard the window open.” Emma sighs softly. “I tried to find her in time to prevent it. I couldn’t.” She tosses the toothpick into the trash can. “This is my fault, Alyssa. The least I can do is clean it up.”

Alyssa steps forward. “How on Earth could it possibly be your fault?”

Emma pauses. “They wanted someone to blame for Marcus dying. If I had just taken that blame, all of this would be over by now.”

“If you had taken that blame, you’d be  _ dead _ by now. They would’ve murdered you in that warehouse.”

“It would’ve been worth it to keep the others safe.” Emma swallows. “To keep  _ you _ safe.”

Alyssa closes the distance between them and cups Emma’s face in her hands. “I feel safe when I’m  _ with _ you. Martyring yourself wouldn’t save me. It would just make me lose the one thing I can’t live without.”

“How very Juliet of you.”

Alyssa laughs and kisses her. “Do you want me to go down to the street so you can try to romance me from the window, Romeo?”

“I think you have that a little backwards, honey.”

“Oh, whatever.” Alyssa rests her forehead against Emma’s. “I love you. Please just trust me.”

“I’ll always trust you. I was just afraid of what you’d think of me.”

“You’re a good friend, Emma Nolan. A loyal friend. No matter what, I’m proud of you for that.” Alyssa walks forward, pushing Emma backwards towards their room. “Now, if you don’t mind, I need to make sure you understand that I will  _ not _ be pleased if you keep blaming yourself for things you didn’t do.”

Emma’s back bumps up against the door to the bedroom. “Uh. I don’t mind, but I feel like I should be scared.”

Alyssa grins. “Maybe a little bit.”

* * *

Kaylee wakes to find Shelby sitting in a chair next to the bed, her head dropping as she starts to fall asleep.

“Didn’t think I was that boring.”

“Hwhtfkwh!?” Shelby jolts, almost falling out of her chair.

Kaylee gives a soft laugh. “Hi there.”

“Kay,” Shelby whispers. She stands up, gently resting her hand on Kaylee’s arm. “Are you feeling okay? Do you need me to get someone?”

“No, no, I’m alright.”

Shelby slumps back down in her chair and leans on the bed. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“Shh shh shh. Shelby. Hey.” Kaylee feels a note of panic, the sight of Shelby like this catching her completely off-guard. “Hey. It’s okay. It’s not your fault.”

“She was aiming for me. She was shooting at me,” Shelby says softly. “She admitted it before…”

Kaylee’s blood goes cold as the implication hits her straight through the fog of pain medication.

“Kaylee,” Shelby says, her voice almost a whimper, cracked and broken. “Kaylee, I need to tell you something. Once I knew you were stable, I-”

Her words are stopped when Kaylee lifts her hand suddenly and covers her mouth. “Shh,” she murmurs again. “Shh, baby. Not here. We’ll talk when I get to go home. Okay?”

Shelby swallows and nods.

Kaylee gives her a soft look and moves her hand from Shelby’s lips, stroking her thumb across her cheek. “It’s okay, Shelby. I promise it’s going to be okay.”

Shelby lets out a shuddering sigh and leans into the touch, closing her eyes. “I love you,” she whispers.

“I love you, too.” Kaylee rests her head back, wincing as pain aches through her body. “It’s okay, Shelby. I love you, too.”


	14. Chapter 14

“Where are you going?” Emma grumbles, grabbing Alyssa by her hips and holding her in place as she tries to get out of bed.

Alyssa laughs and presses a short, sharp kiss to Emma’s lips. “I picked up an early shift, remember?”

Emma rubs her hands over her face and groans quietly. “Why? We can finally sleep in. Shelby’s back at her own place.”

“Yes, honey, but I still enjoy being able to pay my rent.”

“Mm.” Emma yawns and stretches. “Why not just be done with that place and move here permanently?”

They both freeze, Emma still in an awkward mid-stretch position.

“Uhm. I-I mean…” She clears her throat. “Not that. You should get any ideas, sweetheart.”

Alyssa hooks a finger under Emma’s jaw and kisses her hard. “I would never,” she murmurs. She pushes at Emma’s shoulder, rolling her onto her back.

“What are you-”

“I can be a little late.”

“Oh.” Emma clears her throat again. “Well, uh. Okay.”

Alyssa laughs and rests her forehead against Emma’s. “I love you.”

Emma’s eyes soften. “I love you, too.”

“Good. You’d better.” With another laugh, Alyssa starts to pull on her sleep shirt and kisses her.

* * *

“You should ban them,” Greg says with a growl, glaring over at Emma’s table. “After what they did to Kaylee, they shouldn’t be allowed back in this place.”

Alyssa sees her mother sigh as she counts something out from the cash register. “Why do you think they had anything to do with what happened to Kaylee, Greg?”

“How could they not? They’re a gang of bastards and she was shot!”

“Oh, sure, so everything that’s ever happened with a gun ever in this city is their fault?” Alyssa asks with a roll of her eyes.

“Why are you always so eager to defend them?”

She sees Mrs. Greene look up, frowning, and she grits her teeth. “I’m not  _ eager to defend them. _ I just don’t particularly like the fact that you’re always so eager to throw paying repeat customers under the bus just because you don’t like them.” Alyssa turns and walks off, deliberately brushing past Emma as she heads for the back hallway.

* * *

“Lys, what’s wrong?” Emma struggles to ask, her back pressed against the wall as Alyssa kisses her fiercely.

“Nothing. Shut up.”

Emma lets it go for another minute or two before setting her hands on Alyssa’s shoulders and gently pushing her back. “Alyssa,” she murmurs. “What’s wrong?”

Alyssa sighs heavily. “I just… I’m tired, Em. I want to be with you without the asterisks, without the fear, without the… people looking at you and treating you like you’re some thug.”

“In fairness,” Emma says lightly, “I  _ am _ a criminal.”

“You know what I mean,” Alyssa grumbles.

“No, I know. I know.” Emma kisses her on the forehead. “I’m just not sure what to do about it.”

“Neither am I. I’ve already signed my soul over.”

Emma flinches.

“I’m not complaining.” Alyssa sets her palm against Emma’s cheek. “I just… wish things were different. I wish we could just have normal lives together.”

“So do I.” Emma pulls her into a hug, kissing her on the top of the head. “I’m just not sure where to even start trying to get it.”

“...Alyssa? What’s going on back here?”

Alyssa pulls out of the hug and pales, staring at her mother as she comes around the corner. “Uhm… I-I…”

Mrs. Greene’s gaze shifts to Emma. “Are you serious, Nolan? My daughter?”

“I… uh…”

Alyssa looks between them, frowning. “You two know each other. ...Why do you two know each other?”

Emma gives her an apologetic look. “I’m sorry,” she murmurs.

“Mom?”

Mrs. Greene winces. “Alyssa, it’s difficult to explain.”

“Try,” Alyssa says through gritted teeth.

“I’ve…” Mrs. Greene glances at Emma. “Does she need to be here for this conversation?”

Emma starts to leave but Alyssa grabs her by the shoulder and keeps her held against the wall.

“I’ve been practically living with her for months, Mom,” Alyssa murmurs. “Anything you want to say to me, you can say in front of her.”

“Living with… Alyssa, she’s a  _ thief.” _

“And what are you?”

Mrs. Greene hesitates. “I just wanted to keep the place open. To keep you safe.”

“That’s not an answer.”

“I clean their money,” Mrs. Greene whispers. “Not just Nolan’s group. Most of the groups in the area. They drop it off and I hide it behind things in the business, different transactions, and then it goes back out to them as false payroll or fake vendors.”

“Jesus.” Alyssa takes a step back. “All this time that I spent hiding how I felt about Emma because of how you raised me to be  _ moral _ and  _ good, _ and you’re just as much of a criminal as the rest of us.”

“The rest of…” Mrs. Greene turns to Emma. “What did you get my daughter into, Nolan?”

“Don’t. Don’t you  _ dare _ blame her. She didn’t even know I was your daughter when we got involved.” Alyssa shakes her head. “I love her, Mom. And I don’t care if you don’t like that.” She turns and walks back out to the front of the diner.

After a long moment, Emma says, “I’ve tried my best to keep her out of it. To keep her safe. I-I… I love her, Mrs. Greene.”

“You really think that loving her will be enough to keep her alive?” Mrs. Greene scoffs. “It will only get her killed faster.” She shakes her head slowly. “I’ve always liked you, Nolan. I really have. But I can’t say that I like you with my daughter. Not when I know it’s just going to get you both killed.”

Emma gives a soft sigh. “Believe me, ma’am. I’m going to do everything within my power to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

* * *

“I-I’ll go back to my place. I just wanted to make sure you had everything you needed,” Shelby stammers as Kaylee slowly settles onto the couch.

“Shelby,” Kaylee says softly. “Can you please just come sit with me?”

She hesitates, her hands trembling nervously, then goes over and sits on the couch, a decent space between them.

“Don’t do that. Don’t hide from me.” Kaylee reaches out and takes Shelby’s hand, pulling her closer. “This wasn’t your fault, Shelby. You did nothing to make them target you.”

Shelby runs her hands over her face and leans forward on her knees. “I have now,” she whispers.

Kaylee is quiet for a moment before resting her hand on the back of Shelby’s neck. “Tell me.”

Shelby looks back at her, tears in her eyes. “You’ll hate me.”

“No. I won’t.” Kaylee shifts forward and presses a soft kiss to Shelby’s cheek. “Shelby. I love you, and I’m pretty sure I already know what you’re going to say. It’s okay. We’ll figure it out.”

Shelby cracks, sobbing. Kaylee puts her arm around Shelby and pulls her over, gingerly settling her partially on her lap.

“It’s okay,” she whispers, rubbing her hand up and down Shelby’s back. “It’s okay.”

“I just want this to stop,” Shelby chokes out, clutching at the fabric of Kaylee’s sweatpants. “I-I need it to stop. I’m so tired.”

Kaylee rests her forehead against Shelby’s shoulder. “I know, baby.”

Shelby takes in a breath. “You promise I can tell you? I-I need to tell someone. I can’t keep living like this.”

“I swear it.”

Shelby nods and takes in another breath, then begins to speak.

* * *

Barry looks up as Emma enters his office. “Hey, kid. Are you-”

“I need to talk to you.”

He raises an eyebrow and leans back in his chair. “Okay.”

“Cut Alyssa loose.”

“Meaning…”

“I don’t want her involved in this. I don’t want her swearing to anything. I don’t want her put through the initiation procedure. Leave her out of it.”

Barry frowns. “Kid, you can’t be half in and half out. I made Greene a deal, and she accepted it. I know you’ve been showing her some of the ways we steal cars. She can’t just back out now.”

“She’s not backing out.” Emma puts her hands in her pockets. “I’m telling you that she’s not doing this.”

He laughs and stands up. “I don’t really have time for this.”

“Then fucking  _ make _ time!” Emma gets in his way before he can head for the door, her eyes narrowed.

“Don’t take an attitude with me, kid,” Barry growls. “Do you know what’s going on out there right now? Dee Dee’s group was going to allow Shelby to beat the shit out of Natalie for what she did to Kaylee, sure, but they aren’t going to stand by and let her get away with  _ killing her. _ They’re not stupid enough to not know what went down there that night no matter how well you hide it from the cops!”

Emma takes a small step backwards. “What?”

“I’m not an idiot, Emma. Burning the clothes and crushing the weapon in the compactor? That’s the same thing I did for you way back when.” He shakes his head slowly. “I’m proud of you for taking care of it, but it’s not going to save her from them.”

“Fuck,” Emma whispers, turning around.

“Next time, can you at least let me know when one of my people kills someone? I’d rather be aware so that I can at least  _ attempt _ to resolve the situation before it blows up.”

“I don’t want there to  _ be _ a next time!” she yells, whirling back around to face him. “I don’t care anymore, don’t you get that? I’m  _ tired,  _ Barry! I’m so fucking  _ tired! _ I just want a normal life with my girl; I don’t want to live the rest of my life being constantly worried that I’m going to get shot, or tortured, or that one of my friends is going to show up at my apartment covered in blood because they  _ killed someone! _ I just turned twenty-five and I’m so exhausted that it feels more like eighty-five. My knee still aches whenever the air pressure changes from a weather front, did you know that? It’s been seven years since that guy you were trying to make a deal with took a crowbar to it, and it’s  _ still _ fucked up. I need this to be over. Please. Please, Barry, I’m begging you, I need it to stop. I need it to stop. I need it to stop.”

Barry pulls her into a hug as she breaks down, repeating the same words over and over and over again. “I’m sorry,” he whispers. “I always thought I was giving you something better, but I should’ve paid more attention to the physical, not just the money you were making.” He holds her tighter as the mantra stops and she just sobs against his shoulder. “I can’t just cut you loose, kid. The moment you’re not one of my people, you’ll be fair game. They’ll kill you just as readily as they want to kill Shelby. We both know they’ll hold you accountable.”

“I’d rather be dead than keep going through this,” Emma says hoarsely.

“We both know that’s not true.” Barry pats her lightly on the back. “You love Alyssa too much.”

Emma lets out a ragged sigh. “What do I do? What am I supposed to do?”

“We’ll figure it out. I promise. I promise, Em, I’m going to do whatever I can for all of you. No matter what it takes.”

* * *

Alyssa sets her book down as the door opens and Emma walks in.

Any will to argue that was in her vanishes when she sees the pure exhaustion on Emma’s face.

“Are you okay?” she asks softly.

Emma nods and walks over to her. “I’m just…” She shrugs helplessly.

“Come here, love.” Alyssa takes Emma’s hand and pulls her down onto the couch, resting Emma’s head in her lap. As she gently cards her fingers through Emma’s hair, she says, “You’ve known that my mother is working with the gangs this whole time, haven’t you?”

“It’s why we were always at the diner to begin with.” Emma glances at her. “I felt it was something she should tell you when she was ready. She’s your mom, Lys.”

“I know.” Alyssa sighs. “Which is why I know that I should keep all my mad for her, not you.”

“I’d appreciate it, thanks.”

Alyssa laughs. “Noted.” She’s silent for a long moment. “Do you want to talk about what’s bothering you tonight?”

Emma shakes her head. “I wouldn’t even know where to start. I’m just tired.”

“Mm. Understandable.” Alyssa leans down and presses a soft kiss to Emma’s lips. “Hey,” she whispers. “Remember what I told you once? That we should rent a nice expensive hotel room sometime?”

“Yeah.”

“Think about it.” Alyssa’s hands start to wander, brushing over the tension in Emma’s torso. “Think about having whole days where we’d have nothing to do but relax. Wine and fancy meals brought straight to our room. A bathtub big enough to share.” As she talks, her voice low and even, she feels Emma’s body start to go limp under her touch. “We can be in bed for hours. Sleep in however long we want. Do nothing but be together and be happy.”

Emma’s eyes close and her breathing goes quiet and rhythmic, and Alyssa starts to think she’s fallen asleep until she whispers, “I’ve dreamed about it. Like I’ve dreamed about a time where we can be done with all of this, and we’re married and have a little house and a dog and we come home to each other every night.”

Alyssa’s motion pauses. “You want to marry me?”

Emma’s eyes flutter open. “More than anything. Just not until I know we’re both safe. I won’t even let myself  _ look _ at a ring until I know we’re both safe.”

Alyssa kisses her slowly. “I’m fine with that.” She gives her a cheeky grin. “Now I can make sure you get the right one.”

“...You’d say yes? If I asked?”

“Yes.” Alyssa tilts Emma’s chin up and kisses her again. “And you can take that as a preemptive ‘yes’, too.” She taps her finger against Emma’s nose. “But you’re not allowed to steal me a ring, Nolan.”

Emma laughs. “Wouldn’t dare, sweetheart. Wouldn’t dare.”


	15. Chapter 15

“You’re almost ready to go back to work, then?” Emma asks, sitting in a chair in Kaylee’s living room.

“Yep. A few days and then I’m good.” Kaylee pats Shelby on the knee. “If my guard dog lets me go, that is,” she says affectionately.

“I’m just keeping an eye on you,” Shelby says defensively. “It’s my job.”

“I know, sweetheart, I know.”

Emma shakes her head, laughing, and pulls her cellphone out of her pocket to answer it. “Hey, Barry.”

_ “Hey, kid. You have a minute to talk?” _

“Yeah, sure. I’m just at Kaylee’s.”

_ “Good. Because I have a plan to run by you.” _

* * *

Alyssa opens her eyes and rolls over onto her back, mumbling nonsense when she sees Emma sitting, up, staring at the other side of the room. She brushes her fingers down Emma’s back.

“Baby, what’s wrong?” she asks sleepily.

“You love me, right, Lys?”

Alyssa frowns, the tiredness leaving her brain as she sits up and presses a kiss to Emma’s bare shoulder. “You know I do. What’s the matter?”

“I-I know you say you do, I just…” Emma turns her head away. “This is in no way an ultimatum, I just need to know if you would be willing to throw it all away for me. If you’d give up the life you have here for me.”

“Yes,” she says without pause. She reaches around and turns Emma’s chin to face her. “Yes, Emma. I just want you. Why?”

“I just needed to know.” Emma kisses her deeply, pushing forward until Alyssa lies back down with Emma on top of her. “Lys,” she whispers. “I want you. Please.”

Alyssa can feel worry nagging at her brain, fear of the desperation in Emma’s eyes, but those instincts are quelled by the one beating strongest in her heart - the want to do anything to make both of them happy, even if just for a moment.

“Have me, then,” Alyssa says softly. She sets her fingers on the back of Emma’s neck, pulling her down to kiss her. “I’m all yours, Emma Nolan. And that’s all I want to be for the rest of my life.”

She hears a shuddering breath from Emma, almost a sob, but she doesn’t have time to process it before Emma is kissing her and everything goes blank.

* * *

Alyssa frowns as Emma leads her into the diner. “It’s so empty tonight. Even the usual crowd is gone.”

“Must be out doing other things.” Emma puts her arm around Alyssa’s shoulders and walks over to the cash register, where Mrs. Greene is writing some notes on a piece of paper. “How are you tonight?”

“Tired. I’ll be glad when I can get out of here.”

Alyssa laughs and goes around the counter, kissing her mother on the cheek. “Go get some sleep, Mom. I’ll take care of closing.”

“Kaylee’s in the back; we can handle it if the two of you don’t want to stick around.”

“Nah,” Emma says. “We have nowhere else to be. We can keep you company.”

Alyssa smiles at her, but the moment is interrupted when Shelby bursts into the diner, locking the door behind her and pulling the blinds on the door closed.

“They’re here,” she says breathlessly, moving to the windows to start to close those blinds as well.

“Fuck,” Emma mutters. She jumps up onto the booths and starts pulling blinds closed, peeking out through the windows as she goes.

_ “Who’s _ here?” Alyssa demands.

“This is what I was afraid of. I told you that we should’ve gotten you out of here ages ago.” Emma jumps off the booth. “Carrie and the others. They came for Shelby.”

Alyssa pales. “They know about…” She pauses, glancing at her mother.

A loud engine revs as multiple cars stop in the parking lot, surrounding the front door.

Emma winces. “Yeah, I’d say so.”

As Kaylee comes out from the kitchen, there’s a loud knock on the diner door.

_ “Nolan! I know you’re in there; we see your car!” _ Carrie yells.  _ “Send Gonzales out and nobody needs to get hurt!” _

“What if we don’t?” Emma calls back, shrugging when Shelby gives her an incredulous look.

Gunshots fire repeatedly, and they hear the sound of breaking glass, followed by a car alarm that is quickly silenced. Emma winces.

_ “Then your car won’t be the only thing that gets hurt!” _

“That’s just unsportsmanlike,” Emma mutters. She claps her hands together and turns to the others, who are all staring at her. “So! Anybody up for a good old-fashioned standoff?”

* * *

“Sweetheart, do you remember when I showed you how to use a gun in case anybody ever broke in?” Emma takes a revolver out of a holster on her ankle and hands it to Alyssa. “Congratulations, your skill level has been upgraded to ‘hostage situation’.”

Emma points at Mrs. Greene. “Know what you have to do?”

“Absolutely,” Mrs. Greene says with a determined nod.

“Excellent!” Emma takes a step backwards towards the door. “Shelby, are you ready?”

Shelby looks nervous, but she says, “I am.”

“Great!”

“Emma,” Alyssa says. “Why are you not worried? What is going on?”

“Oh, I’m terrified.” Alyssa turns her head as her mother heads towards the back, but Emma sets her hands on her shoulders and refocuses her attention. “No matter what happens, follow Shelby’s lead. Everything will be fine. I promise.” She kisses Alyssa on the forehead. “Please trust me,” she whispers.

“I do trust you. But it worries me that whatever this is is so serious that you didn’t tell me.”

Emma gives her a soft smile and kisses her. “I was just worried that you wouldn’t let me do what needs to be done.”

Alyssa’s blood goes cold. “What do you mean?”

Emma brushes her knuckles against Alyssa’s cheek. “I love you, Lys.”

She turns, unlocks the door, and walks outside.

* * *

Emma beams and holds her hands up as she steps out of the diner. “Howdy. Beautiful night, isn’t it?”

Carrie stares at her, baffled. “What are you doing, Nolan?”

“Just wanted a look at the sky.” She glances around at the multiple cars, the people with guns all aimed at her. “Wow. Awful big crew for one little kidnapping. Gonzales really means that much to you?”

“She killed one of ours. We’re not putting up with any more shit from you people.”

“Huh. Well, I’m going to have to think on it a bit.” Emma reaches into her pocket and pulls out a pack of cigarettes. “I tell you, man, all the stress of these last few months? It’s been so damn easy to fall back into bad habits.” She sticks one of the cigarettes into her mouth and puts the pack away before patting at her pockets. “Fuck.” She nods at Carrie. “You have a light?”

“What? Come on, Nolan, stop fucking around.”

“Come on. Give some respect, one lieutenant to another. We both know you’re going to kill me. You can at least give me a light before you shoot me.”

Carrie’s eyes narrow, but she takes out a book of matches and walks forward, handing it to Emma.

“Appreciate it.” Emma lights the cigarette and takes it out of her mouth, holding it in one gloved hand and the book of matches in the other. “You know. You did a really good job.”

“A really good job of what?”

“Setting everything up. Calling the guards at that shipyard to start a war between Barry and Dee Dee. Blaming me in the hopes that you could kill me and ruin any chance of Barry ever forgiving any of you. I’ll bet that you even convinced Natalie that Shelby was the one who did it, and then you turned around and stabbed her right in the back by telling Shelby that she was the one who shot Kaylee. As grabs for power go, Carrie, it’s a damn good one.”

Carrie gives a small smile. “You’ll never prove it.”

Emma shrugs. “Oh, probably not. But maybe I don’t have to.” She puts the cigarette back in her mouth. “Did you ever hear about that arson charge I got arrested for?”

Carrie rolls her eyes. “Yes. The one you insist you didn’t do.”

“Here’s the thing about that.” Emma takes a few steps backwards towards the door. “I lied.”

She lights another match and flicks it onto the ground between her and Carrie, and a flame bursts up between them. Carrie jumps back.

“Are you insane?” she yells as she watches the fire spread along a path around the diner.

“Maybe a little,” Emma replies. “But you’re a murderer.” She smirks and holds up the matchbook. “Your fingerprints.” She points at the line of fire. “Gasoline straight from the tanks by your warehouse.”

Carrie stares at her. “You planned this. You had Gonzales draw us here.”

Emma just smiles as Jess runs out from the other side of the building, stopping next to Carrie. “There’s a fire in the back of the shop too. We went to check to see if they were escaping but the whole thing is engulfed.”

Carrie pales as she meets Emma’s eyes. “You’re mad,” she whispers. “You’ll die.”

Emma tosses the cigarette into the flames. “It’s worth it.” She turns and opens the diner door, heading back into the burning building.

* * *

**\- ONE YEAR LATER -**

“I just need a few more signatures, Mrs. Greene, and then we’ll be done. And again, I’m sorry that this process took this long. We had to wait for the police investigation.”

Mrs. Greene takes a tissue from the insurance agent’s desk and dabs at her eyes. “I still can’t believe it took so much time. I was in that building before the fire started. Standing outside, seeing those flames, knowing my daughter and those other girls were inside…” She shakes her head as her voice cracks. “It’s still so much.”

“I’m sorry for your loss, ma’am.”

“Thank you, young man.” Mrs. Greene finishes signing the last paper and hands it back to the agent. “Is this all you need from me?”

“Yes. You’ll receive the insurance payments from the destruction of the diner as well as the life insurance on Alyssa Greene within the next week.”

“Good.” Mrs. Greene sighs softly. “I think it’s about time I retire.”

* * *

Hours north of the city, several states away, in a small suburb, a phone rings in the Douglas Locksmith Shop.

The blonde behind the counter picks it up, holding it between her shoulder and her ear as she puts away tools. “Douglas Locksmithing, how can I help you?”

_ “I locked myself out of my house and I was hoping one of your people could come save me.” _

“Sure. I’ll be right on it.”

_ “Not you. The other one.” _

The blonde grins. “Flirt with Shelby on your own time, Kaylee. We have work to do.”

_ “Oh, you’re no fun, Em. What happens when I actually do lock myself out one of these days?” _

“It’ll teach you not to cry wolf so much.” With a laugh, Emma hangs up the phone. She looks over her shoulder towards the back room. “Shelby, your girlfriend misses you.”

Shelby leans out from behind one of the racks of key blanks, giving her a sheepish look. “Sorry, boss. She’s bored. She hasn’t figured out what she wants to do yet.”

“Can’t relate. Alyssa’s opening a bakery in town.” Emma pulls her jacket on. “And I’m going home.” She grins. “To my wife.”

Shelby groans. “I get it. You’re married. You’re happy. You don’t need to be so gross about it.”

“Don’t be jealous, Guerrero, you have a girl of your own. Make it official instead of whining at me.” With a smirk, Emma pushes the door to the shop open and heads off.

* * *

Alyssa looks up as the front door of the house opens and Emma walks in, immediately greeted by a ball of golden fluff.

“Hey, Nugget,” Emma says, bending down and petting the puppy enthusiastically. “How’s my best girl? What a good girl. Yes you are.”

“Two months ago, you greeted _ me _ when you got home,” Alyssa says idly.

“Sorry, sweetheart, but she’ll think that I don’t love her if I ignore her.” Emma goes over to the couch and pulls on Alyssa’s legs, getting her flat on the couch before she joins her.

Alyssa laughs and shoves at her shoulder. “Maybe I don’t like being ignored, either.”

“Well, I’m so sorry, Mrs. Douglas. Have some discussions with our child.”

“I’ll do that.” Alyssa gently threads her fingers through Emma’s hair. “My mother called. She got the money. She’s going to head up in a few days.”

“Good. I know she’s wanted to see you. I’m sorry she couldn’t before now.”

“It’s hard to pretend to be dead if your mother is always over for dinner.”

Emma presses a soft kiss to Alyssa’s cheek. “I’m going to give her a fake I.D. and a burner cell. She’ll be able to use them to visit us whenever she wants without suspicion. And if she wants, I’ll get her set up here like we are. I don’t want you to lose her.”

“Thank you.” Alyssa pulls Emma in and kisses her slowly. “Before she gets here, we should try out that tub we got installed.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Mhm.” Alyssa runs her hands down Emma’s back. “We’re safe. We’re free. We’re  _ us.  _ And you know what? I think we should enjoy it.”

“You know what I think?”

“What?”

Emma kisses her, long and deep. “I think for the first time in my life I don’t feel exhausted. I’d like to spend every minute of the rest of my life feeling like that with you.” She gives Alyssa a goofy smile. “You stole my heart, Alyssa.”

Alyssa groans. “That’s awful.”

“I’m a prisoner to your love.”

“No.”

Emma gets up from the couch, taking Alyssa’s hand and pulling her with her towards the stairs. “I’d kill for your smile.”

“Please. Stop. This is literally agonizing,” Alyssa says as they head up the steps.

“But baby, the flames of passion fuel us.”

_ “Emma-” _ Alyssa’s voice breaks off with a squeak as Emma grabs her and picks her up, holding her in her arms.

“I love you,” Emma says quietly.

Alyssa gives her a soft smile. “I love you, too.”

Emma kisses her on the side of the head, then they both laugh as Emma runs the last few steps up to the second floor of their home.


End file.
